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THE  GODS  of 
MEXICO  ^ 


NEPHRITE  FIGURE  OF  A DEATH-GOD. 
(Now  in  the  Stuttgart  Museum.) 


[Frontispiece 


THE 

GODS  OF  MEXICO 


By  LEWIS  SPENCE 

FELLOW  OF  THE  ROYAL  ANTHROPOLOGICAL 
INSTITUTE  OF  GREAT  BRITAIN  AND  IRELAND 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW  YORK 

FREDERICK  A.  STOKES  COMPANY 
PUBLISHERS 

1923 


TO 

MY  WIFE, 

WITH  DEEPEST  GRATITUDE 
AND  AFFECTION 


(All  rights  reserved) 


PRINTED  IN  GREAT  BRITAIN 


PREFACE 


THIS  book  deals  exclusively  with  the  religion  of  the 
peoples  of  ancient  Mexico.  With  the  history  and 
archaeology  of  that  country  I am  not  concerned  in 
these  pages,  unless  where  they  have  a bearing  upon  the 
main  subject.  By  “ Mexico  ” I mean  that  region  of  North 
America  lying  between  the  Tropic  of  Cancer  and  the  Isthmus 
of  Tehuantepec.  Thus  only  passing  reference  to  the  religion 
of  the  Maya  of  Yucatan  or  the  Quiche  of  Guatemala  is  made 
in  the  way  of  occasional  comparison. 

I have  thought  it  best  at  the  outset  to  make  these  points 
clear  beyond  the  possibility  of  misapprehension.  It  was 
formerly  usual  to  regard  the  entire  tract  occupied  by  Central 
American  civilization  from  the  Tropic  of  Cancer  to  Nicaragua 
as  one  and  indivisible  in  its  manifestations.  But  it  is  now 
clear  that  the  type  of  advancement  peculiar  to  the  more 
northerly  portion  inhabited  by  the  Nahua  (Aztec  and 
Chichimec)  peoples  of  Mexico  proper  presents  numerous  and 
striking  divergencies  from  the  more  southerly  though  related 
Maya  civilization  of  Yucatan  and  Guatemala.  Regarding 
the  priority  of  these  two  cultures  no  doubt  exists.  The 
Maya  was  greatly  the  more  ancient.  But  during  the  century 
preceding  the  conquest  of  Mexico  by  Cortez  it  had  been 
subjected  to  Nahua  immigration  and  influences,  especially 
as  regards  its  religious  beliefs.  It  is  therefore  necessary  to 
exercise  caution  in  the  identification  of  Nahua  or  Mexican 
w'ith  Maya  myths  and  divine  forms,  and  with  this  in  view  I 
have  directed  my  researches  more  especially  to  an  examina- 
tion of  the  deities  and  ritual  practices  of  the  Mexican  area, 
in  the  hope  that  once  the  fundamental  beliefs  of  this  better- 


V 


VI 


PREFACE 


known  region  have  been  ascertained,  the  results  arrived  at 
may  be  applied  with  some  measure  of  confidence  to  the 
obscure  field  of  Maya  belief.  It  seemed  to  me  also  essential, 
if  progress  were  to  be  made,  to  apply  a more  intensive  method 
of  investigation  than  has  hitherto  been  deemed  possible  or 
desirable  to  the  first  origins  of  the  Mexican  gods,  and  it  is 
especially  with  the  results  obtained  by  this  means  that  I 
am  concerned  rather  than  with  the  conclusions  of  others. 

I have  chosen  The  Gods  of  Mexico  as  the  title  of  this  book, 
as  its  contents  refer  more  particularly  to  the  development 
and  general  description  of  the  deities  of  ancient  Anahuac 
than  to  the  questions  of  ritual,  priesthood,  or  religious  archi- 
tecture. It  has  seemed  to  me  that,  once  the  fundamental 
nature  of  the  gods  has  been  made  clear,  when  the  multi- 
tudinous and  conflicting  details  regarding  them  have  been 
sifted,  collated,  and  reduced  to  order,  more  will  have  been 
done  to  discover  the  whole  purport  of  Mexican  religion 
than  if  investigation  had  been  directed  in  particular  to  ritual 
practice.  But  that  I have  not  neglected  the  question  of 
ritual  is  proved  by  the  extended  notices  of  the  festivals  I 
have  appended  to  the  description  of  each  of  the  gods.  I 
have,  however,  confined  my  descriptions  and  criticisms  of 
ceremonial  to  these,  and  have  refrained  from  the  illustration 
of  the  sacraments  of  life  and  death,  baptism,  burial,  and  the 
like,  as  it  is  my  hope  to  be  able  to  deal  with  the  whole 
subject  of  ritualistic  practice  among  the  Mexicans  at  a 
future  date. 

Many  authorities,  even  should  they  sympathize  with  the 
endeavour  set  forth  in  these  pages,  will  question  its  timeous- 
ness.  Our  knowledge  of  the  religion  of  ancient  Mexico, 
they  will  say,  is  still  too  vague  and  too  fragmentary  to  permit 
of  the  assemblage  and  criticism  of  its  material.  Such  a 
charge  it  is  impossible  to  gainsay.  Yet  the  bitter-sweet 
experience  of  twenty  years  of  meditation  among  the  ruins 
of  the  Mexican  pantheon  has  emboldened  me  to  attempt  its 
partial  restoration  by  the  aid  of  such  reconstructive  capacity 
as  I possess.  My  reasons  for  essaying  this  rather  adventurous 
undertaking  are  twofold.  The  first  is,  that  although  the 


PREFACE 


vii 


time  is  scarcely  ripe  for  it,  the  venture  may  inspire  more 
skilful  investigators  to  address  themselves  to  the  task  of 
research  in  a subject  that  has  been  unaccountably  neglected 
in  this  country.  The  second  is  the  hope  that  those  who 
come  after  me  in  the  study  of  Mexican  religion  may,  as  the 
result  of  my  labours,  be  spared  the  many  weary  years  of 
groping  that  have  fallen  to  my  lot,  and  be  enabled  to  com- 
mence their  journey  from  the  point  where  I now  stand. 

Although  political  and  financial  conditions  in  Mexico 
frequently  arouse  a passing  agitation  in  the  minds  of  British 
people,  the  antiquities  of  that  extraordinary  land,  various 
as  Greece  and  mysterious  as  Egypt,  have  failed  to  appeal 
to  them  with  the  same  degree  of  interest.  We  have  not  yet, 
perhaps,  quite  recovered  from  the  amazement  with  which 
in  our  own  day  we  have  seen  the  secret  gates  of  the  East 
unlocked  and  the  prodigies  of  Mesopotamia  and  the  endless 
dynasties  of  the  Nile  emerge  therefrom.  Yet  an  archaeology 
less  venerable,  but  no  less  notable,  pleads  with  us  for  recogni- 
tion from  a continent  so  closely  associated  with  the  spirit  of 
modernity  that  we  can  scarcely  believe  in  its  ability  to  present 
us  with  the  credentials  of  respectable  antiquity.  American 
scientists,  howrever,  have  in  recent  years  successfully  addressed 
themselves  to  the  problems  of  Isthmian  research,  and  the 
antiquaries  of  Germany  and  France  have,  in  certain  respects, 
even  improved  upon  their  endeavours.  Great  Britain  alone 
remains  insensible  to  the  lure  of  old  Mexico,  and  small  indeed 
is  the  band  of  workers  that  she  has  given  to  this  department 
of  archaeology. 

No  manifestation  of  the  life  and  thought  of  ancient  Mexico 
so  well  deserves  the  attention  of  British  students  of  antiquity 
as  its  picturesque  if  bizarre  religion.  Our  position  in  folklore 
is  pre-eminent ; indeed  we  may  with  justice  claim  the  recon- 
struction of  traditional  science  as  due  to  the  efforts  of  British 
scholarship.  As  the  English  word  “ folklore  ” is  in  world- 
wide use,  so  is  the  terminology  of  the  science  it  denotes 
replete  with  English  expressions  ; yet  in  British  wrorks  which 
deal  with  traditional  lore  the  Mexican  analogies  employed 
are  almost  invariably  quoted  at  second-hand,  sources  of  the 


PREFACE 


viii 

most  unsatisfactory  description  are  drawn  upon  to  illustrate 
Mexican  belief,  and  it  is  obvious  that  the  few  modern  treatises 
which  have  sought  to  explain  this  most  involved  of  all 
mythologies  are  not  sufficiently  taken  advantage  of  by  autho- 
rities on  folklore. 

To  those  who  possess  even  an  elementary  acquaintance 
with  the  study  of  Mexican  religion  this  will  cause  no  surprise, 
for  the  initial  difficulties  which  confront  even  the  experienced 
antiquary  who  desires  to  gain  a working  knowledge  of  its 
principles  are  sufficiently  discouraging.  In  all  likelihood  the 
quest  is  sooner  or  later  abandoned  in  despair  of  acquiring 
that  fundamental  information  from  which  it  is  possible  to 
proceed  to  a more  profound  knowledge  of  the  subject.  The 
native  languages,  familiarity  with  which  is  desirable,  are 
complex  and  difficult  of  mastery.  The  paintings  or  codices 
which  depict  the  gods  present  a riot  of  syTmbolic  intricacy 
sufficient  in  itself  to  damp  enthusiasm.  Many  years  must 
be  spent  in  the  study  of  a system  of  symbolic  painting,  to 
which  a specially  qualified  section  of  the  Mexican  priesthood 
dedicated  itself  in  the  full  knowledge  of  a mythological 
scheme  at  the  nature  of  which  we  can  but  guess.  It  is,  above 
all,  necessary  to  become  thoroughly  conversant  with  an  over- 
whelming body  of  Spanish  Colonial  literature,  which  must 
be  handled  with  the  greatest  discretion,  owing  to  its  vague, 
contradictory,  and  essentially  untrustworthy  character. 
Lastly,  an  acquaintance  with  manuscript  sources,  obscure 
and  difficult  of  access,  is  quite  as  indispensable,  and  these, 
indeed,  are  among  the  most  valuable  of  the  adjuncts  to  a 
knowledge  of  Mexican  belief. 

By  far  the  most  eminent  and  successful  among  modern 
writers  on  Mexican  mythology  and  ritual  is  Professor  Eduard 
Seler,  of  Berlin,  who,  owing  to  the  generosity  of  the  Due  de 
Loubat,  has  been  enabled  to  publish  monographs  upon  the 
principal  Mexican  hieroglyphical  paintings  or  codices.  In 
these  he  has  done  much  for  the  elucidation  of  the  involved 
symbolism  in  which  the  native  MSS.  abound,  and  has  greatly 
added  to  our  knowledge  of  the  divine  forms  represented  in 
their  grotesque  pages.  Elaborate  photogravure  reproduc- 


PREFACE 


IX 


tions  of  these,  the  papyri  of  Mexico,  have  also  been  published, 
superseding  the  older  and  less  accurate  copies  in  the  great 
collection  of  Lord  Kingsborough.  In  his  Gesammelte  Abhand- 
lungen,1  too,  a work  quite  encyclopaedic  as  regards  its  scope 
and  aim,  Professor  Seler  has  approached  almost  every  problem 
presented  by  Mexican  archaeology.  But  his  work  might  have 
been  of  greater  value  had  he  been  mindful  of  the  difficulties 
which  the  subject  presents  to  the  non-specialist  reader. 
Indeed,  the  technicality  and  aridity  of  his  general  method 
often  render  his  output  comprehensible  to  few  but  the 
“ senior  wranglers  ” of  the  study. 

American  students  of  ancient  Mexico  and  Central  America 
have  almost  entirely  confined  themselves  to  the  examination 
of  sites  and  monuments.  In  France,  M.  Beuchat  has  pro- 
vided students  with  an  admirable  handbook  in  his  Archeologie 
Ameri caine,  which,  if  too  general  in  its  purport  and  marred 
by  a lack  of  linguistic  knowledge,  is  still  valuable  as  an 
elementary  manual  to  American  antiquity.  The  essays  of 
Lehmann,  De  Jonghe,  and  Preuss  have  provided  the  student 
with  translations  of  manuscript  material  hitherto  closed  to 
him,  or  have  smoothed  his  way  to  a clearer  comprehension 
of  the  difficulties  connected  with  the  Mexican  calendar.  The 
best  modern  English  handbook  on  Mexican  archaeology  is 
that  by  Mr.  T.  Athol  Joyce,  of  the  British  Museum,  but  its 
lack  of  references  is  a serious  drawback  and  the  material  it 
contains  suffers  from  compression. 

The  method  of  my  investigation  of  the  divine  forms  of 
Mexico  is  set  forth  in  the  introductory  paragraph  immediately 
preceding  that  part  of  the  book  which  deals  with  the  gods 
more  especially.  Regarding  the  tonalamatl  and  the  Calendar, 
I have  thought  it  best  to  relegate  this  difficult  and  obscure 
subject  to  an  appendix,  in  order  that  it  should  not  interfere 
with  the  main  current  of  proof.  In  dealing  with  the  Codices 
throughout  I have  employed  the  pagination  of  Seler  rather 
than  that  of  Kingsborough,  as  referring  to  the  more  modern 
and  greatly  preferable  editions  of  the  Due  de  Loubat,  except 

1 See  Bibliography  for  description  of  this  and  all  other  works  alluded  to 
throughout  the  work. 


CONTENTS 


xii 


CHAPTER  V 

DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 

Introductory — Tlazolteotl — Chicomecoatl  — Cinteotl  — Ciuacoatl  — Coat- 
licue  — Xochiquetzal  — Macuilxochitl  or  Xochipilli  — Xipe  — Xilonen  — 
Itzpapalotl — Zapotlantenan — Hamatecutli  . . . pp.  153-233 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 

Introductory  — Tlaloc  — Chalchihuitlicue  — Uixtociuatl  — Atlaua  — 
Napatecutli  — Matlalcueye  — Opochtli  ....  pp.  234-267 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  FIRE-GODS 

Xiuhtecutli — Chantico — Quaxolotl  ....  pp.  268-284 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  OCTLI  OR  PULQUE  (DRINK)  GODS 

General  — Tezcatzoncatl  — Tepoxtecetl  — Patecatl  — Mayauel  — Totol- 
tecatl — Macuiltochtli — Totochtin — Tomiauhtecutli  . . pp.  285-299 


CHAPTER  IX 

STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 

Tonatiuh  the  Sun- God  (Piltzintecutli) — Metztli  or  Tecciztecatl  the  Moon- 
God — Mixcoatl,  Iztac  Mixcoatl  or  Camaxtli — Tlauizcalpantecutli — Coyol- 
xauhqui — The  Tzitzimime  ......  pp.  300-326 


CHAPTER  X 

GODS  OF  DEATH,  EARTH,  AND  THE  UNDERWORLD 
Mictlantecutli — Mictecaciuatl — Tepeyollotl  . . . pp.  327-335 


CHAPTER  XI 

VARIANTS  OF  THE  GREAT  GODS 


Itztli — Itztlacoliuhqui — Paynal — Yacatecutli 


pp.  336-343 


CONTENTS 


xiu 


CHAPTER  XII 

MINOR  DEITIES 

Xolotl — Ixtlilton — Omacatl — The  Ciuateteo  or  Ciuapipiltin  pp.  344-358 


APPENDIX 

THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 

Day-signs — Model  tonalamatl — The  day-gods — Gods  of  the  “ weeks  ” — Lords 
of  the  night — Lords  of  the  day-hours — Tonalamatl  festivals — Recapitulation — • 
The  calendar  round — The  nemontemi — The  Venus  period — Short  biblio- 
graphy of  works  relating  to  the  tonalamatl  . . . pp.  359-37 1 


A CRITICAL  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN 

RELIGION pp.  372-381 

GLOSSARY pp.  382-383 


INDEX 


pp.  384-388 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


Nephrite  Figure  of  a Death-god  . Frontispiece 


FACING  PAGES 

Colossal  Statue  of  Coatlicue  . . . 14,  15 

Statue  of  Coatlicue  . . . . . 16,  17 

The  Great  Calendar  Stone  of  Mexico  . . 38 

Symbols  of  the  “ Suns  ” in  Mexican  Cosmogony  40,  41 
The  Trees  of  the  World -quarters  . . 58,  59 

The  Tree  of  the  Middle-quarter  ...  60 

UlTZILOPOCHTLI  .......  66 

COYOLXAUHQUI  .......  67 

The  Red  and  Black  Tezcatlipocas  ...  92 

Tezcatlipoca  in  Various  Forms  ...  93,  98 

Altar  of  Skulls  to  Tezcatlipoca  ...  99 

Quetzalcoatl  and  Tlauizcalpantecutli  . . 118 

Quetzalcoatl  and  the  Deatii-god  . . .119 

Forms  of  Quetzalcoatl  . . . . 120,  121 

Tonacatecutli-Tonacaciuatl  ....  121 

Forms  of  Tlazolteotl  . . . . . 156,  157 

Forms  of  Chicomecoatl  .....  170 

ClNTEOTL  ........  171 

ClUACOATL  ........  180 

Forms  of  Ciuacoatl  ......  181 

XOCHI QUETZAL  AND  HER  SYMBOLS  . . . .188 

Forms  of  Xochiquetzal  . . . .189,  190 

Stone  Figures  of  Macuilxochitl  . . . 196,  197 

Forms  of  Macuilxochitl  . . . . .198 

Forms  of  Xochipilli  . . . . . .199 

Pottery  Figure  of  Xochipilli  ....  200 


XIV 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


xv 


FACING  PAGES 

Forms  of  Xochipilli  ......  201 

Forms  of  Xipe  .......  204 

Stone  Image  of  Xipe  ......  205 

Forms  of  Xipe  .......  208 

Itzpapalotl  ........  222 

Itzpapalotl  (Stone  of  Aristides  Martel)  . . 223 

XlLONEN  AND  ZAPOTLANTENAN  ....  223 

Forms  of  Tlaloc  .....  236,  237,  240 

Chalchihuitlicue  .......  253 

Chalchihuitlicue  and  Tlauizcalpantecutli  . . 259 

Chalchihuitlicue  and  Uixtociuatl  . . . 260 

Forms  of  the  Tlaloque  .....  261 

Xiuhtecutli  and  Tlauizcalpantecutli  . 268,  269,  272 

XlUHTECUTLI  AND  CHANTICO  .....  276 

Ixcocanhqui  and  Chantico  .....  277 

TepoxtecatC,  ........  292 

Patecatl,  with  Octli  Emblems  ....  293 

The  Octli-gods  ......  298,  299 

Totoltecatl  ........  299 

Forms  of  Tonatiuii  ......  300 

Mexican  Idea  of  Sacrifice  to  the  Sun-god  . . 301 

Planetary  Deities  ......  304 

Forms  of  Mixcoatl  .....  310,  311 

Forms  of  Tlauizcalpantecutli  ....  320 

Tlauizcalpantecutli  and  Victim  ....  321 

Forms  of  the  Underworld  Deities  . . . 328 

Statue  of  an  Octli-god  .....  329 

Variants  of  the  Great  Gods  ....  336 

XOLOTL  AND  TLALOC  ......  344 

Minor  Deities  .......  345 

The  Lords  of  the  Night-hours  ....  364 


NOTE  ON  THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF  MEXICAN 


THE  pronunciation  of  Mexican  names  presents  at  first 
some  little  difficulty.  The  letter  X is  invariably 
pronounced  as  sh,  so  that  Mixcoatl  and  Mexitli  are, 
viva  voce,  Mishcoatly  and  Meshitlee,  the  final  tl  being  pro- 
nounced as  tl  followed  by  a short  y,  although  the  natives  in 
many  parts  of  the  country  articulate  it  with  a definite  clicking 
sound,  unapproachable  by  a European.  The  names  of  the 
more  important  gods  are  pronounced  as  follows  : 


Uitzilopochtli  = Wit-zil-o-potchtly 

Tezcatlipoca  = Tez-catly-poca 

Quetzalcoatl  = Quetzal-co-at-ly 

Xipe  = Shee-pay 

Chalchihuitlicue  = Chal-chee-weet-lee-kway. 

Most  of  the  others  are  comparatively  simple  of  pronuncia- 
tion. The  ch  sound  is  pronounced  as  in  Spanish,  i.e.  hard, 
as  in  “ thatch.” 


XVI 


THE  GODS  OF  MEXICO 


CHAPTER  I 
INTRODUCTORY 

THE  TYPE  AND  EVOLUTION  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 

IF,  like  the  necromancers  of  old,  we  possessed  the  power 
to  summon  the  shades  of  the  dead  before  us,  and  em- 
ployed this  dread  authority  to  recall  from  the  place  of 
shadows  the  spirit  of  a member  of  the  priesthood  of  ancient 
Mexico,  in  order  that  we  might  obtain  from  him  an  account  of 
the  faith  which  he  had  professed  while  in  the  body,  it  is 
improbable  that  we  would  derive  much  information  regarding 
the  precise  significance  of  the  cult  of  which  he  was  formerly  an 
adherent  without  tedious  and  skilful  questioning.  He  would 
certainly  be  able  to  enlighten  us  readily  enough  on  matters  of 
ritual  and  mythology,  calendric  science  and  the  like ; but  if  we 
were  to  press  him  for  information  regarding  the  motives  under- 
lying the  outer  manifestations  of  his  belief,  he  would  almost 
certainly  disappoint  us,  unless  our  questionary  was  framed  in 
the  most  careful  manner.  In  all  likelihood  he  would  be 
unable  to  comprehend  the  term  “religion,”  of  which  we  should 
necessarily  have  to  make  use,  and  which  it  would  seem  so 
natural  for  us  to  employ  ; and  he  would  scarcely  be  capable 
of  dissociating  the  circumstances  of  his  faith  from  those  of 
Mexican  life  in  general,  especially  as  regards  its  political, 
military,  agricultural,  and  artistic  connexions. 

Nor  would  he  regard  magic  or  primitive  science  as  in  any 
way  alien  to  the  activities  of  his  office.  But  if  we  became 
more  importunate,  and  begged  him  to  make  some  definite 
statement  regarding  the  true  meaning  and  import  of  his 
I 


\ 


2 


INTRODUCTORY 


religion  ere  he  returned  to  his  place,  he  might,  perhaps, 
reply : “ If  we  had  not  worshipped  the  gods  and  sacrificed 
to  them,  nourished  them  with  blood  and  pleasured  them 
with  gifts,  they  would  have  ceased  to  watch  over  our  wel- 
fare, and  would  have  withheld  the  maize  and  water  which 
kept  us  in  life.  The  rain  would  not  have  fallen  and  the  crops 
would  not  have  come  to  fruition.”  1 If  he  employed  some 
such  terms  as  these,  our  phantom  would  outline  the  whole 
purport  of  the  system  which  we  call  Mexican  religion,  the 
rude  platform  on  which  was  raised  the  towering  super- 
structure of  rite  and  ceremony,  morality  and  tradition,  a 
part  of  which  we  are  about  to  examine. 

The  writer  who  undertakes  the  description  of  any  of  the 
great  faiths  of  the  world  usually  presupposes  in  his  readers 
a certain  acquaintance  with  the  history  and  conditions  of 
the  people  of  whose  religion  he  treats.  But  the  obscurity 
which  surrounded  all  questions  relating  to  Mexican  antiquity 
until  the  beginning  of  this  century  formerly  made  it  essential 
that  any  view  of  its  religious  phase  should  be  prefaced  by 
an  account  of  the  peoples  who  professed  it,  their  racial 
affinities,  and  the  country  they  occupied.  This  necessity  no 
longer  exists.  The  ground  has  been  traversed  so  often  of  late, 
and  I have  covered  it  so  frequently  in  previous  works,'  that 
I feel  only  a brief  account  of  these  conditions  is  necessary 
here,  such,  in  a word,  as  will  enable  the  reader  to  realize 
circumstances  of  race,  locality,  and  period. 

The  people  whose  religious  ideas  this  book  attempts  to 
describe  were  the  Nahua  of  pre-Colombian  Mexico,  a race 
by  no  means  extinct,  despite  the  oft-repeated  assertions 
of  popular  novelists,  and  which  is  now  usually  classed  as 
a branch  of  the  great  Uto-Aztecan  family  of  the  North  Ameri- 
can Indian  stock.  They  spoke,  and  their  descendants  still 
speak,  a language  known  as  the  Nahuatl , or  Nahuatlatolli 
(“speech  of  those  who  live  by  rule”  or  “ by  ritual  observance”). 
At  the  era  of  the  Spanish  invasion  of  their  country  in  1519 

1 Motecuhzoma  described  his  faith  to  Cortez  in  almost  precisely  similar 
terms.  See  Bernal  Diaz,  True  History  oj  the  Conquest  of  Mexico,  Maudslay’s 
translation.  London,  1908. 

1 Especially  in  The  Civilization  of  Ancient  Mexico,  1911. 


THE  AZTECA 


3 


they  had  succeeded  in  overrunning  and  reducing  to  their 
dominion  practically  all  that  part  of  modern  Mexico  which 
lies  between  the  Tropic  of  Cancer  and  the  Isthmus  of 
Tehuantepec.  They  were,  in  all  probability,  immigrants 
from  the  north,  and  their  art-forms,  no  less  than  their  phy- 
sique and  beliefs,  have  led  certain  writers  to  form  the  opinion 
that  they  came  originally  from  the  neighbourhood  of  British 
Columbia,  or  that  they  had  a common  origin  with  the  Indian 
tribes  which  inhabit  that  region  at  the  present  time. 

However  this  may  be,  the  first  Nahua  immigrants  would 
appear  to  have  entered  the  Valley  of  Mexico  at  some  time 
during  the  eighth  century  of  our  era.  But  the  Azteca,  part 
of  a later  swarm  of  Nahua,  do  not  seem  to  have  descended 
upon  it  until  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century,  or  to 
have  founded  the  settlement  of  Mexico-Tenochtitlan  until 
about  the  year  1376.  At  the  period  of  their  arrival  in  the 
valley  they  were  a barbarous  tribe  of  nomadic  hunters, 
wandering  from  place  to  place  in  search  of  fresh  hunting- 
grounds,  precisely  as  did  many  North  American  Indian 
tribes  before  reservations  were  provided  for  them.  Gradually, 
by  virtue  of  their  superior  prowess  in  war,  they  achieved 
the  hegemony  of  the  Plateau  of  Anahuac,  which  boasted  a 
tradition  and  civilization  at  least  five  hundred  years  old. 
These  they  proceeded  to  assimilate  with  marvellous  rapidity, 
as  is  not  infrequently  the  case  when  a race  of  hunters  mingles 
with  a settled  agricultural  population.  Indeed,  in  the 
course  of  the  century  and  a quarter  which  intervened  between 
the  founding  of  Mexico  and  the  period  of  the  Spanish  Con- 
quest, they  had  arrived  at  such  a standard  of  civilization 
as  surprised  their  Castilian  conquerors.  When  the  Azteca, 
abandoning  their  wandering  life,  finally  settled  in  the  Valley 
of  Anahuac,  upon  the  site  of  Tenochtitlan,  now  the  city  of 
Mexico,  they  embarked  upon  a series  of  conflicts  with  their 
neighbours,  which  ended  in  the  complete  subjection  of  these 
peoples. 

The  races  over  whom  they  exercised  a kind  of 
feudal  sway  were  many  and  diverse,  and  only  the  more 
important  of  these  can  be  mentioned  here.  To  the  north 


4 


INTRODUCTORY 


dwelt  the  hunting  Chichimecs,  a related  people,  and  the 
Otomi,  a semi-barbarous  folk,  probably  of  aboriginal  origin, 
and  speaking  a distinct  language.  To  the  west  dwelt  the 
Tarascans,  whose  racial  affinities  are  unknown,  or,  at  least, 
dubious.  South  of  the  Rio  de  las  Balsas  were  situated  the 
Mixtecs  and  Zapotecs,  whose  language  somewhat  resembled 
that  of  the  Otomi  and  who  possessed  a larger  measure  of 
civilization.  On  the  East  Coast  were  found  the  Huaxtecs 
and  Totonacs,  races  of  Maya  origin,  and  south-east  of  these 
lay  the  Olmecs,  Xicalancas,  and  Nonoualcas,  of  older  pre- 
cedence in  the  land.  Beyond  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec 
were  found  the  Maya,  a people  of  relatively  high  civilization, 
whose  origin  is  obscure,  and  into  the  question  of  whose 
relationship  I do  not  propose  to  enter  in  this  place. 

THE  ANTIQUITY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 

Until  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  most  Ameri- 
canists held  that  Mexican  civilization  and  consequently 
Mexican  religion  were  the  outcome  of  but  a few  generations 
of  native  progress.  It  is  true  that  the  Nahua  people  had 
behind  them  a relatively  brief  history  of  national  and  tribal 
life,  but  modern  research  has  shown  that  they  were  un- 
doubtedly the  heirs  of  a civilization  having  early  foundations 
and  of  considerable  achievement  and  complexity,  the  religious 
aspect  of  which  had  arrived  at  a high  state  of  development.1 
Evidences  of  the  archaic  character  of  this  faith  are  rapidly 
accumulating,  but  many  years  must  yet  be  dedicated  to  the 
examination  and  comparison  of  the  data  concerning  it  before 
it  is  possible  to  speak  with  any  degree  of  certainty  regarding 
the  causes  which  contributed  to  its  formation  and  evolution. 

Although  we  must  necessarily  regard  Mexican  religion  as 
having  had  a progressive  history  spread  over  many  genera- 
tions, we  are  at  present  almost  ignorant  of  the  gradual 
changes  which  accompanied  its  growth.  An  effort  will  be 
made  to  outline  the  probable  nature  of  these  mutations, 
but  the  endeavour  will  not  receive  any  great  measure  of 


1 See  Seler,  GtsammtUe  Abhandlungen,  passim. 


SOURCES  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 


5 


assistance  from  the  abundant  but  chaotic  and  unclassified 
material  amassed  by  Americanists  during  the  last  twenty 
years,  which  in  its  present  condition  is  not  of  much  value 
as  regards  this  particular  branch  of  the  subject,  but  which 
it  is  the  writer’s  intention  to  employ,  so  far  as  it  is  capable 
of  illustrating  the  question  before  us. 


THE  LITERATURE  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 

It  is  necessary  at  this  stage  to  deal  briefly  with  the  sources 
of  Mexican  religious  history.  A literature,  bewildering  in 
its  scope  and  variety,  has  grown  up  around  the  subject  of 
Mexican  antiquity  as  a whole,  and  it  is  perhaps  well  for  the 
student  if  he  approaches  it  with  only  a partial  realization 
of  the  spacious  character  of  the  material  he  must  review. 
I have  thought  it  best  in  such  a work  as  this  to  relegate  most 
of  the  bibliographical  matter  to  an  appendix,  where  an 
endeavour  has  been  made  to  supply  the  student  with  a 
trustworthy  catalogue  of  such  manuscripts  and  works  as 
are  essential  to  the  study  of  Mexican  religion.  It  is  hoped 
that  this  may  prove  of  guidance  and  assistance  and  spare 
much  initial  toil.  But  for  the  present  I will  confine  my 
remarks  to  such  general  observations  upon  the  sources  from 
which  we  partly  glean  our  knowledge  of  the  ancient  Mexican 
faith  as  will  serve  the  immediate  purpose.  These  sources 
are  four  in  number:  (I)  The  native  codices  or  paintings; 
(II)  the  native  annals;  (III)  native  art-forms  in  architecture, 
sculpture,  pottery,  and  mural  painting,  depicting  gods  and 
other  divine  beings ; and  (IV)  the  writings  of  the  Spanish 
conquerors  of  Mexico. 

(I)  The  Native  Codices. — These  are  paintings  executed  by 
native  Mexican  artists  upon  agave  paper,  leather,  or  cotton. 
Through  the  misguided  zeal  of  the  early  Spanish  religious 
authorities,  who  regarded  them  as  of  diabolic  character, 
only  some  twelve  of  these  remain  to  us,  the  greater  number  of 
which  possess  a mythological  or  religious  significance.  In 
their  pages  we  find  representations  of  many  of  the  principal 
deities  of  the  Mexican  pantheon,  as  well  as  illustrations  of 


6 


INTRODUCTORY 


several  passages  in  Mexican  myth,  and  they  frequently 
depict  the  tonalamatl  or  priestly  Book  of  Fate,  with  its 
highly  complex  symbolism.1  Close  familiarity  with  these 
manuscripts  is  indispensable,  as  they  constitute  one  of  the 
few  original  sources  of  our  knowledge  of  the  aspect,  costume, 
and  insignia  of  the  Mexican  deities.  All  of  them  have  been 
handsomely,  if  expensively,  reproduced,  and  these  are 
detailed  in  the  bibliography. 

Here  it  is  only  necessary  to  remark  upon  the  several 
theoi'ies  which  have  regard  to  their  place  of  origin.  Dr.  H.  J. 
Spinden,  in  his  valuable  Study  of  Maya  Art,  objects  that 
“ most  of  the  detailed  accounts  of  religious  beliefs  and  cere- 
monies that  have  come  down  to  us  refer  primarily  to  the 
Valley  of  Mexico,  while  nearly  all  the  really  elaborate  codices 
of  a religious  nature  come  from  either  the  Zapotecan-Mixtecan 
area  or  from  the  Maya.”2  We  aie  not  here  concerned  with 
the  Maya  manuscripts,  and  with  regard  to  the  Zapotec  and 
Mixtec  examples  we  have  the  assurance  of  Seler,1  which  is 
founded  upon  critical  evidence  of  value,  that  an  entire 
group  of  these  manuscripts— and  that  by  far  the  most 
important,  the  Codex  Borgia  group — “ belongs  to  a Mexican- 
speaking people  ” who  inhabited  the  districts  of  Teouacan, 
Cozcatlan,  and  Teotitlan  del  Camino,  and  who,  though 
separated  from  the  Nahua  of  the  Valley  of  Anahuac  at  an 
early  period,  yet  in  great  measure  retained  the  ancient  beliefs 
common  to  both.  Nearly  all  of  the  deities  represented  in 
this  group  of  manuscripts  so  closely  resemble  in  their  aspect, 
costume,  and  general  symbolism  the  drawings  and  descrip- 
tions of  gods  known  to  have  been  worshipped  in  the  Mexican 
area  proper,  as  to  make  it  positively  certain  that  they  repre- 
sent the  same  divine  beings  with  merely  trifling  differences 
of  detail  due  to  local  environment.  The  separation  of  the 
Nahua  of  the  Plateau  of  Mexico  and  those  of  the  more 
southerly  region  was  of  such  duration  as  to  justify  the  belief 
that  their  religious  ideas  had  diverged  considerably.  But  the 
subsequent  conquest  of  the  southern  area  by  the  Northern 

1 See  Appendix,  The  Tonalamatl  and  the  Solar  Calendar. 

2 A Study  of  Maya  Art,  1913,  p.  225. 

3 See  his  commentaries  on  the  several  codices,  passim. 


NATIVE  ANNALS 


7 


Nahua  must  have  resuscitated  old  common  beliefs  among 
their  kindred  in  the  south,  and  weakened  the  ideas  they 
had  adopted  or  developed  in  that  environment.  This  is 
proved  by  the  considerable  variation  in  type  between  the 
oldest  southern  pottery  representing  what  are  presumably 
divine  forms  and  the  pictures  of  the  gods  in  the  later 
manuscripts  of  the  Codex  Borgia  group. 

(II)  The  Native  Writings. — These  “ annals,”  as  they  are 
sometimes  called,  the  work  of  natives  who  wrote  in  Spanish, 
constitute  a mine  of  aboriginal  information  of  nearly  equal 
value  with  that  contained  in  the  codices,  but  considerable 
discrimination  is  necessary  in  using  them  in  view  of  the  tend- 
ency of  their  authors  to  corrupt  traditional  material  when 
inspired  by  patriotic  or  other  motives.  This,  however, 
manifestly  does  not  apply  with  equal  force  to  accounts  of  a 
mythical  or  ritual  nature  and  to  historical  events,  which 
offer  a much  greater  temptation  than  the  former  to  scribes 
manifestly  ignorant  of  the  virtues  of  literary  integrity.  The 
Mexican  annals  are  of  two  classes  : those  which  represent 
the  historical  or  traditional  relics  of  native  communities, 
such  as  the  Annals  of  Quauhtitlan,  also  known  as  the  Codex 
Chimalpopoca  ; and  those  which  are  the  work  of  educated 
Mexicans  or  half-breeds,  prone  to  magnify  the  splendour  of 
the  ancient  races.  Ranking  almost  as  a third  or  separate 
class  are  the  sacred  songs  or  hymns  included  in  the  Mexican 
MS.  of  Sahagun’s  Historia  General , which  that  most  un- 
wearied of  workers  received  at  first  hand  from  approved 
native  scribes.  The  several  native  writings  will  be  found 
described  in  the  appendix,  and  the  hymns,  or  rather  a trans- 
lation of  them  into  English  prose,  will  be  met  with  in  the 
descriptions  of  the  several  deities  to  which  they  apply. 

(III)  Native  Art-forms. — Mexican  architectural  motifs, 
mural  paintings,  and  especially  sculpture  and  pottery, 
frequently  afford  reliable  material  upon  which  to  form  con- 
clusions regarding  the  aspect  and  costume  of  the  gods,  and 
reproductions  of  the  most  important  of  these  illustrate  the 
descriptions  of  the  several  Mexican  deities. 

(IV)  Writings  of  the  Spanish  Conquerors  of  Mexico. — If 


8 


INTRODUCTORY 


the  representatives  of  the  Church  in  Mexico  must  be  con- 
demned for  their  narrow  and  illiberal  action  in  destroying 
all  native  manuscripts  and  paintings  bearing  upon  the 
ancient  religion  of  the  country,  certain  more  enlightened 
individuals  among  them  laboured  strenuously  to  remove 
this  reproach  by  their  zealous,  if  frequently  unskilful, 
attempts  to  reconstruct  a knowledge  of  the  popular  faith  by 
unremitting  researches  into  native  tradition.  This  attitude 
met  with  but  little  countenance  from  their  ecclesiastical 
superiors,  and  at  times  they  laboured  under  conditions  the 
reverse  of  favourable  for  the  collection  of  traditional  material. 
But  it  would  be  ungrateful  not  to  pay  a meed  of  respect  to 
the  self-sacrifice  of  those  enlightened  and  resourceful  men, 
but  for  whose  endeavours  our  knowledge  of  Mexican  anti- 
quities would  be  all  the  poorer. 

Undoubtedly  the  most  valuable  collection  of  evidence 
relative  to  the  Mexican  religion  compiled  by  a Spanish 
churchman  is  the  Ilistoria  General  of  Bernardino  Sahagun, 
whose  work,  composed  with  scholarly  care  and  an  almost 
prophetic  knowledge  of  the  correct  methods  to  be  pursued 
in  the  collection  of  traditional  material,  was  completed 
about  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  but  remained 
unpublished  until  1830.  This  work  has  been  described  so 
repeatedly  as  to  require  no  further  mention  here,  and  other 
notable  works  are  included  in  the  bibliography.  Some 
allusion  should  also  be  made  here  to  the  works  known  as 
the  Interpretative  Codices,  compiled  by  Pedro  de  Rios  and 
other  monks,  who  retained  the  services  of  native  painters 
to  execute  drawings  of  Mexican  deities  or,  as  some  believe, 
drew  these  figures  themselves,  the  symbolism  and  general 
meaning  of  which  they  endeavoured  to  make  plain  and 
interpret,  only  too  often  in  the  light  of  their  knowledge  of 
the  Scriptures. 

THE  ORIGINS  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 
The  question  of  the  origin  of  Mexican  religion,  like  that  of 
the  civilization  of  which  it  was  perhaps  the  most  salient 
characteristic,  has  afforded  matter  for  ardent  controversy 


MEXICAN  RELIGIOUS  ORIGINS 


9 


from  the  period  of  the  discovery  and  conquest  of  the  country 
until  the  present  day.  But,  even  so,  it  is  still  unsafe  to  dog- 
matize upon  Mexican  religious  origins.  At  the  time  of  the 
Conquest  we  observe  Mexican  religion  as  a highly  complex 
faith,  with  a ceremonial  of  the  most  elaborate  nature,  a 
priesthood  with  nicely  defined  gradations  in  office,  and  a 
pantheon  which  had  obviously  been  formed  by  the  colloca- 
tion of  the  deities  of  provincial  and  dependent  tribes  and 
peoples  around  a nucleus  composed  of  the  national  and 
departmental  gods  of  the  Azteca.  The  great  temple-area 
of  Mexico-Tenochtitlan  harboured  a bewildering  array  of 
gods,  many  of  which  possessed  separate  shrines  and  minis- 
trants.  An  intensive  examination  of  the  alien  elements 
represented,  however,  tends  to  prove  the  identity  of  many 
of  them  with  the  gods  of  the  Azteca,  a similarity  which,  in 
numerous  instances,  was  manifest  to  that  people  themselves 
and  which  was  the  result  of  tribal  affinity  or  basic  resemblance 
in  religious  conception.  Nevertheless  a residuum  of  unre- 
lated deities  remained,  which  might,  perhaps,  be  accounted 
for  by  positing  the  existence  of  two  markedly  different 
cultures  or  tendencies  in  Mexico,  barbarous  and  civilized. 
This  may  imply  that  the  opposing  influences  which  gave 
rise  to  these  variations  were  alien  to  each  other  racially, 
or  it  may  indicate  that,  whereas  one  had  remained  in  an 
environment  of  barbarism,  the  other  had  developed  and 
enlarged  its  theological  and  even  its  mythical  conceptions 
in  the  light  of  the  necessities  of  an  advancing  material 
civilization.  Whence  the  seeds  of  that  civilization  came 
is,  as  has  been  said,  matter  of  controversy.  The  existence 
of  a system  of  monachism  in  Mexico  would  seem  to 
indicate  a non- American  origin.  Elements  common  to  both 
aspects  of  this  interesting  faith  were  sufficiently  numerous 
in  Mexican  religion.  Thus  the  so-called  Chichimecs,  or  rude 
hunters  of  the  steppes  to  the  north  of  the  Valley  of  Mexico, 
retained  in  their  pristine  form  the  simple  beliefs  and  the 
ungraded  pantheon,  which  in  the  case  oi  the  more  advanced 
tribes  of  cognate  origin  rapidly  took  shape  as  a great  State 
religion  under  the  influences  of  a more  complex  social  system, 


10 


INTRODUCTORY 


the  stimulus  of  alien  religious  conceptions,  and  above  all,  of 
a priesthood  skilled  in  the  reduction  of  theological  and 
mythical  material  to  dogma.  This  cult,  although  composed 
of  elements  perhaps  at  first  conflicting  in  aim  and  character, 
had  yet  arrived  at  a comparative  degree  of  homogeneity 
and  had  evolved  an  intricate  and  exacting  ritual  and  a 
symbolism  of  great  richness  and  artistic  complexity,  the 
extensive  and  bewildering  nature  of  which  can  be  verified 
by  a cursory  inspection  of  the  native  codices. 

EVIDENCES  OF  EARLY  RELIGION  IN  MEXICO 

The  myths  which  relate  to  the  earliest  religious  influences 
in  Mexico  are  for  the  most  part  connected  with  the  pre-Aztec 
“ Toltec  ” civilization  and  the  more  ancient  and  sacred  sites 
of  Tollan  and  Teotihuacan.  They  chiefly  refer  to  a god  or 
culture-hero  called  Quetzalcoatl,  whose  myths  and  attributes 
will  be  described  elsewhere  in  this  work,  and  who  was  regarded 
as  the  prototype  of  the  Mexican  priesthood  and  one  of  the 
inventors  of  the  tonalamatl  or  Book  of  Fate.  The  type  of 
religion  founded  by  him  differs  greatly  from  that  practised 
by  the  Mexicans  at  the  period  of  the  Conquest,  as  it  eschewed, 
or  was,  perhaps,  originally  innocent  of,  human  sacrifice  or 
ceremonial  cannibalism,  and  practised  purification  and  pen- 
ance by  the  drawing  of  blood.  In  certain  myths  its  founder 
is  described  as  a native  of  the  country,  in  others  as  the 
offspring  of  divine  beings,  while  still  others  regard  him  as  a 
foreigner  who  introduced  his  cult  from  the  east.  It  is 
noteworthy  that  this  cult  is  closely  connected  with  monach- 
ism  1 and  that  in  later  times  it  was,  perhaps,  regarded  as 
more  intimately  bound  up  with  pietistic  and  “ civilized  ” 
ritual  practice  than  that  of  any  other  Mexican  deity. 
Ultimately,  the  myths  relate,  Quetzalcoatl  left  the  country 
because  of  the  machinations  of  “ enchanters.”  8 This  may 
mean  that  the  older  and  less  barbarous  cult  was  forced  into 
a secondary  place  by  the  ruder  and  more  popular  beliefs  of 
a tribe  of  lower  culture,  but  there  are  evidences  that  the 

1 See  Torquemada,  bk.  vi,  c.  24. 

2 Sahagun,  III,  c.  4 ; Analea  de  Quauhtillan. 


THE  RAIN-CULT 


11 


religion  of  Quetzalcoatl  assuredly  assisted  in  the  building- 
up  of  the  rain-cult  of  Mexico.  In  any  case  little  information 
is  to  be  gleaned  from  the  myth  of  Quetzalcoatl  for  our 
present  purpose  of  illustrating  the  primitive  type  of  Mexican 
religion,  and  it  must  probably  be  regarded  as  pointing  to 
the  existence  of  an  early  monachism  and  a developed  ritual 
in  ancient  Mexico.1 

The  myths  relating  to  the  great  tribal  gods,  if  faithfully 
examined,  assist  us  in  forming  a definite  idea  of  the  character 
of  early  religious  conceptions  in  Anahuac.  The  hymns  to  the 
gods  are,  perhaps,  a surer  indication  of  the  trend  of  popular 
faith  and  probably  date  from  a more  archaic  period  than  do 
the  myths,  which,  as  we  possess  them,  nearly  all  exhibit 
signs  of  priestly  alteration.  In  several  of  these  chants  we 
assuredly  arrive  at  the  whole  significance  of  Mexican  religion, 
which  in  its  essence,  and  as  seen  at  the  Conquest  period, 
was  nothing  more  than  a vastly  elaborated  rain- cult,  similar 
in  its  general  tendency  to  that  still  prevalent  among  the 
Pueblo  tribes  of  New  Mexico  and  Arizona,  yet  broader  in 
outlook,  of  a higher  complexity  and  productive  of  a theology 
and  an  ethical  system  of  greater  sophistication  and  scope. 
The  religion  of  the  Pueblo  peoples  is,  indeed,  the  poor  and 
degenerate  descendant  of  the  bizarre  and  picturesque  ritual 
of  the  Mexicans,  or,  more  probably,  had  a common  origin 
with  it.  Through  the  researches  and  personal  exertions  of 
many  well-equipped  Americanists  the  entire  ritual  of  this 
modern  pluvial  cult  is  now  well  known  and  deserves  the 
closest  study  from  students  of  Mexican  religion,  as  providing 
them  with  comparative  and  analogical  material  of  the  first 
importance.’ 

We  shall  keep  on  the  trail  of  a very  definite  clue  if  we 
attempt  to  descry  in  such  evidences  as  we  possess  of  archaic 
Mexican  faith  the  signs  of  an  incipient  rain-cult,  having  its 
origin  in  a settled  agricultural  existence.  If  we  glance  at 

1 On  Quetzalcoatl  generally  see  Sahagun,  passim  ; Torquemada,  vol.  i, 
p.  254;  Motolinia,  tom.  i,  pp.  10-11  ; and  Mendieta,  passim. 

1 Consult  bibliography  to  chapter  ix  of  H.  B.  Alexander’s  North  American 
Mythology.  Boston,  1916. 


12 


INTRODUCTORY 


the  general  characteristics  of  the  numerous  members  of  the 
Mexican  pantheon,  we  find  that  very  readily  and  quite 
naturally  they  group  themselves  into  three  great  classes  : 
(a)  creative  deities,  which  may  be  regarded  as  the  outcome 
of  late  theological  speculation,  and  which  may,  accordingly, 
be  passed  over  in  this  place  ; ( b ) gods  of  growth  ; and  (c)  gods 
developed  from  specific  objects  and  deified  heavenly  bodies, 
some  of  which  latter  were  developed  from  gods  of  the  chase. 
The  “ original  ” deities  of  Mexico  Would  seem,  therefore,  to 
have  presided  over  vegetable  growth  and  conferred  on  their 
votaries  good  luck  in  the  hunt.  But  as  time  passed,  these 
latter  also  took  on  the  attributes  of  gods  of  the  cereal  and 
vegetable  food-supply,  and,  indeed,  often  seriously  contested 
the  status  of  the  true  growth-gods  in  the  elaborate  nature  of 
the  symbolic  vegetal  ceremonial  with  which  their  festivals 
were  celebrated. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  Valley  of  Mexico  became  the 
centre  of  a cult  of  which  the  appeal  for  rain  was  the  salient 
characteristic.  A copious  supply  of  rainfall  for  the  purposes 
of  irrigation  is,  indeed,  a necessity  to  the  Mexican  agricul- 
turist, and  a dry  year  in  ancient  Anahuac  brought  with  it 
famine  and  misery  unspeakable.  Inexpressibly  touching  are 
the  fervent  prayers  to  Tlaloc,  god  of  water,  that  he  should 
not  visit  his  displeasure  upon  the  people  by  withdrawing 
the  pluvial  supply.  “ O our  most  compassionate  lord  . . . 
I beseech  thee  to  look  with  eyes  of  pity  upon  the  people  of 
this  city  and  kingdom,  for  the  whole  world,  down  to  the  very 
beasts,  is  in  peril  of  destruction  and  disappearance  and 
irremediable  end  . . . for  the  ridges  of  the  earth  suffer  sore 
need  and  anguish  from  lack  of  water  . . . with  deep  sighing 
and  anguish  of  heart  I cry  upon  all  those  that  are  gods  of 
water,  that  are  in  the  four  quarters  of  the  world  ...  to 
come  and  console  this  poor  people  and  to  water  the  earth, 
for  the  eyes  of  all  that  inhabit  the  earth,  animals  as  well  as 
men,  are  turned  towards  you,  and  their  hope  is  set  upon 
you.”  1 


1 Sahagun,  bk.  vi,  c.  viii. 


THE  ELEMENTS  OF  GROWTH 


18 


DEIFICATION  OF  THE  ELEMENTS  OF  GROWTH 

The  elements  of  growth,  in  the  mind  of  primitive  man, 
are  four  in  number,  the  earth,  grain,  rain,  and  solar  heat, 
and  it  is  not  remarkable  that  all  of  these  came  to  be  regarded 
as  deified  powers,  and  were  latterly  personalized  in  anthro- 
pomorphic form.  It  does  not  appear  that  the  sun  was  at 
first  looked  upon  as  an  agency  of  growth.  There  is,  indeed, 
proof  that  in  early  times  he  was  not  regarded  as  of  any 
importance  from  a calendric  point  of  view,  and  that  the  time 
and  festival-counts  were  designed  upon  a lunar  basis.1  It 
is  not  unlikely  that,  in  a region  vrhere  his  torrid  heat,  if 
unaccompanied  by  rainfall,  resulted  in  famine,  he  was 
at  first  regarded,  if  not  unfavourably,  at  least  with  no  special 
predilection.  If  this  conclusion  is  correct,  and  we  can 
afford  to  discount  solar  influence  in  the  primitive  Mexican 
cultus — or  rather  that  adopted  by  the  aboriginal  peoples 
on  embracing  a settled  agricultural  existence — there  remain 
to  us  the  three  elements  of  earth,  grain,  and  rain  from  w’hich 
to  reconstruct  the  prototypes  of  the  Mexican  pantheon. 

In  Mexican  myth  the  earth  is  represented  as  a monster 
known  as  cipactli,  the  pictures  of  which  have  given  rise  to  the 
assumption  that  it  is  either  a crocodile,  a swordfish,  or  a 
dragon.  We  shall  probably  not  err  if  we  place  it  in  the  last 
category  and  see  in  it  that  great  earth-monster  common  to 
the  mythologies  of  many  races,  and  which  is  most  conveni- 
ently called  the  “ earth-dragon.”  1 This  sign  cipactli  became 
the  first  in  the  tonalamatl  or  Book  of  Fate,  where  it  is  connected 
with  the  creative  deities  and  the  Earth-mother,  who  was 
known  by  many  names.  Circumstances  exist  which  seem 
to  lend  colour  to  the  assumption  that,  as  in  other  countries, 
the  Mexican  Earth-mother  had  at  one  time  been  regarded 
as  forming  the  earth,  the  soil.  At  the  terrible  and  picturesque 
festival  of  the  Xalaquia  (“  She  who  is  clothed  with  the  sand  ”), 
the  sacrificed  virgin  was  supposed  to  enrich  and  recruit 
with  her  blood  the  frame  of  the  worn-out  goddess,  who  had 

1 See  appendix  on  Tonalamatl. 

1 See  chapter  on  Cosmogony. 


14 


INTRODUCTORY 


been,  says  Seler,  “ merged  in  the  popular  imagination  with 
the  all-nourisher,  the  all-begetter,  the  earth.”  1 

Perhaps  the  best  evidence  that  the  idea  of  the  Earth- 
mother  was  associated  with  the  conception  of  the  earth- 
dragon  is  afforded  by  the  colossal  stone  figure  of  Coatlicue, 
one  of  her  manifestations,  which  once  towered  above  the 
entrance  to  the  temple  of  Uitzilopochtli  in  Mexico  and  is  now 
housed  in  the  Museo  Nafional  in  that  city.  In  this  figure, 
as  in  a similar  if  less  massive  statue  from  Tehuacan,  the 
characteristics  of  the  cipactli  earth-animal  obtrude  them- 
selves in  a wealth  of  scale,  claw,  and  tusk,  which  although 
frequently  described  as  serpentine,  is  only  partially  so,  and 
shows  traces  that  more  than  one  idea  was  in  the  mind  of  the 
artist  who  chiselled  its  symbolic  intricacies.  In  the  latter 
of  these  sculptures  the  appearance  of  ferocity  is  most  marked 
and  is  accompanied  by  the  same  dragon-like  claws  on  hands 
and  feet.  In  the  mythologies  of  many  lands  the  Earth- 
mother  is  represented  as  ferocious,  insatiable,  as  slaying  those 
who  take  part  in  her  amours,  as  a riotous  and  outrageous 
demon,  unnatural  and  destructive  in  her  lusts  and  appetites, 
and  it  would  seem  that  her  Mexican  phase  throws  light  upon 
the  reasons  for  this  savage  wantonness.  In  the  sculpture 
first  alluded  to,  and  in  the  carving  on  its  base,  we  can  per- 
ceive a close  resemblance  to  the  earth-monster  of  the  Maya 
peoples,  especially  as  represented  in  the  carvings  at  Copan 
and  in  the  Temple  of  the  Cross  at  Palenque.  These  afford 
almost  irrefragable  proof  of  the  correctness  of  the  supposition 
regarding  the  fusion  of  the  concepts  of  the  earth-beast  and  the 
earth-mother  which  has  been  outlined.8 

The  deification  of  the  grain  is  so  universal  a phenomenon 
as  to  require  but  little  explanation,  especially  in  regard  to 
a country  where  it  formed  the  staple  alimentary  supply. 
It  appears  to  have  received  divine  honours  in  many  districts 
in  Mexico  and  to  have  been  worshipped  under  a variety  of 
names,  but  there  was  little  difference  between  the  characters 

1 Seler,  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  1902-3,  p.  174. 

1 In  many  cosmogonies — Hindu,  Babylonian,  Chinese,  Scandinavian,  for 
example — the  earth  is  formed  from  the  remains  of  a slain  monster  or  living 
being. 


COLOSSAL  STATUE  OF  COATLICUE.  (Front.) 
(Now  in  the  Museo  National,  Mexico.) 


141 


[1 


TLALOC,  THE  RAIN-GOD 


15 


of  these  several  cults,  and  the  absence  of  this  is  well  exempli- 
fied by  the  readiness  with  which  they  amalgamated  and  the 
fusion  of  their  central  figures. 

The  deification  of  the  rain,  as  apart  from  the  idea  of  a 
mere  rain-god,  is  perhaps  a circumstance  of  more  novelty 
to  the  student  of  Comparative  Religion.  Tlaloc,  the  god  of 
rain  or  moisture,  is  one  of  the  most  striking  examples  of  this 
process  in  any  mythology.  A god  of  great  antiquity,  his 
pluvial  character  is  obvious  and  undoubted.  But  he  is 
also  the  life-giver,  the  nourisher,  who  from  his  home  in  the 
green  uplands  of  Tlalocan  sends  the  vivifying  rains  to  fill 
the  deep  fissures  in  the  hard,  cracked  soil  of  the  Valley  of 
Anahuac.  In  the  courtyard  of  his  dwelling  stood  four  jars 
of  water,  typifying  the  four  different  “ kinds  ” of  rainfall 
which  corresponded  to  the  four  quarters  of  the  heavens,  and 
these  were  distributed  by  his  progeny,  the  Tlaloque.  There 
is  the  best  evidence  that  the  aspect  of  Tlaloc  was  evolved  from 
the  idea  of  the  rain  itself.  His  face  is  formed  from  the 
interlacings  of  two  serpents,  his  face-paint  is  black  and  blue, 
or  dirty  yellow  like  the  threatening  cloud  which  holds  the 
thunder-shower.  The  garments  he  wears  are  splashed  with 
ulli  rubber-gum,  evidently  intended  to  symbolize  rain-spots. 
Indeed,  his  robe  is  called  the  anachxe chilli  or  “ dripping 
garment,”  and  is  frequently  depicted  as  set  with  green  gems 
to  represent  the  sparkling  raindrops.  Few  rain-gods,  even 
the  Vedic  Indra  himself,  whom  Tlaloc  somewhat  resembles, 
are  so  frankly  symbolic  of  the  moisture  which  falls  from 
above.1  But  his  serpentine  or  dragon-like  form  renders  it 
probable  that,  although  he  was  regarded  in  later  times  as 
a personification  of  the  rain,  in  earlier  times  he  was 
looked  upon  as  the  “ Water  Provider,”  the  great  serpent 
or  dragon  which  dwelt  among  the  hills  and  which  must  be 
defeated  by  a hero  or  demi-god  ere  it  will  disgorge  the  floods 
which  ensure  the  growth  of  vegetation. 

EVIDENCE  OF  PRIMITIVE  INFLUENCES 
We  may  now  examine  the  elements  just  described  for  traces 


1 See  section  on  Tlaloc. 


16 


INTRODUCTORY 


of  the  early  constituents  of  religion.  The  conception  that 
the  earth  itself  was  a monster  gifted  with  life  is  evidently 
the  outcome  of  a belief  in  “ animism  ” or  “ personalization,” 
and  merits  little  further  notice  because  of  its  obvious 
character.  Although  the  grain  was  also  personalized,  there 
are  evidences  of  its  “ fetishtic  ” nature  in  early  times.  The 
great  stone  figure  of  Coatlicue  already  alluded  to,  besides 
affording  evidence  of  the  dragon-like  character  of  the  Earth- 
mother,  exhibits  many  of  the  attributes  of  the  primitive 
fetish  manufactured  from  bundles  of  maize,  large  beans 
representing  the  eyes  and  pumpkin  pips  the  teeth,  while 
strips  of  paper  form  the  mouth  and  labret.  True,  these 
early  characteristics  have  been  overlaid  by  the  abounding 
symbolism  of  later  and  more  complex  ideas — the  skin  of  the 
sacrificial  victim,  the  serpent-heads,  representing  perhaps  the 
spouting  of  that  victim’s  blood  from  the  severed  trunk  and 
the  skirt  of  serpents  with  which  myth  credited  the  goddess 
—but  in  the  clumsy  amorphousness  of  this  wondrously 
carven  block  we  can  readily  perceive  the  outline  of  the  maize- 
sheaves  from  which  its  idea  was  drawn.  Indeed  the  ears 
and  leaves  of  the  maize-plant  descend  from  underneath  the 
skirt  of  serpents  and  decorate  the  knot  which  secures  it 
behind.1 

“ FETISH  ” ORIGIN  OF  GODS 

More  than  one  of  the  great  gods  exhibit  the  signs  of 
fetishtic  origin.  Uitzilopochtli,  the  great  tribal  patron  deity 
of  the  Azteca  of  Mexico-Tenochtitlan,  was  described  in  tradi- 
tion as  leading  them  from  the  mythical  northern  country 
of  Aztlan  in  the  form  of  “ a little  bird.”  He  is  usually 
represented  in  the  pictorial  MSS.,  where  his  appearance  is 
infrequent,  as  wearing  a mantle  made  from  humming-birds’ 

1 Payne  in  his  History  oj  the  New  World  called  America,  vol.  i,  1892,  pp. 
424  £f.,  was  the  first  to  indicate  the  “ fetishtic  ” nature  of  this  statue,  which 
he  identifies  as  that  of  Chieomecoatl.  He  pours  the  vials  of  scorn  upon 
“ the  Italian  dilettante  Boturini  ” for  his  identification  of  the  block  as 
Uitzilopochtli-Teoyaomiqui.  He  further  states  that  it  “ has  no  limbs,” 
but  its  large,  scaly  dragon-legs  are  at  least  as  obvious  as  his  lack  of  success 
in  giving  the  sculpture  its  proper  name. 


II' 


STATUE  OF  COATLICUE.  (Front.) 
(Found  in  the  Ca'.ie  del  Caliseo,  Mexico.) 


16] 


117 


BEAST-GODS 


17 


feathers.  Later  legend  spoke  of  him  as  the  vindicator  of 
his  mother,  a goddess  of  vegetation,  and  as  slaying  her 
detractors,  his  own  half-brothers,  while  in  historical  times 
the  whole  business  of  war  was  arranged  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  his  oracular  image  and  was  carried  out  chiefly 
in  view  of  the  necessity  for  human  sacrifice  which  charac- 
terized his  especial  cult.  But  if  we  examine  the  roots  of  the 
beliefs  which  cluster  around  him,  we  shall  find  much  to  con- 
vince us  that  he  was,  after  the  entrance  of  his  people  into 
the  Valley  of  Anahuac,  identified  with  the  maguey  plant, 
which  forms  so  familiar  an  object  in  the  Mexican  landscape. 
Extended  proof  of  this  lowly  origin  will  be  found  in  the  section 
which  deals  with  the  god. 

Quite  as  humble  are  the  beginnings  of  the  god  Tezcatli- 
poca,  perhaps  the  most  universally  dreaded  among  the 
Mexican  deities.  Regarding  his  precise  significance  nothing 
very  definite  has  been  arrived  at  by  modern  authorities. 
As  will  be  shown  later,  the  early  significance  of  Tczcatlipoca 
arises  out  of  his  connexion  with  obsidian,  which  had  an 
especial  sanctity  for  the  Mexicans. 

ANIMAL  GODS 

In  our  gropings  for  the  roots  of  the  Mexican  faith  we 
must  not  fail  to  notice  those  elements  which  stand  apart 
from  agricultural  religion  and  are  eloquent  of  the  concepts 
of  a still  earlier  time.  Agricultural  theology  is  as  old  as 
agriculture,  and  no  older.  The  food-supply  of  the  savage 
prior  to  that  period  depends  upon  the  successful  conduct 
of  the  chase.  His  gods  are  therefore  often  precisely  of  the 
species  of  animal  by  hunting  which  he  gains  a livelihood, 
and  which  he  frequently  regards  as  placed  at  his  disposal 
by  a great  eponymous  beast-god  of  the  same  kind.1  Again, 
for  some  reason  which  has  never  been  satisfactorily  explained 
and  for  which  no  solution  can  be  found  at  present,  in  view  of 
the  rather  dubious  nature  of  what  is  known  as  “ totemism,” 
primitive  man  adores,  or  in  some  manner  exalts,  certain 

1 Soe  my  article  “ Cherokees  ” in  Hastings’  Encyclopedia  of  Religion  and 
Ethics,  vol.  iii,  p.  504. 


18 


INTRODUCTORY 


animals  on  the  flesh  of  which  he  does  not  live.  But  although 
gods  evolved  from  animal  shapes  are  frequently  to  be  met 
with  in  the  Mexican  pantheon,  I can  recall  no  instance  of  the 
taboo  of  the  flesh  of  any  animal  as  an  article  of  diet  in 
Anahuac,  or  Mexico  proper,  although  this  may  be  found  in 
the  cultus  of  several  of  the  tribes  of  the  more  outlying 
regions. 

Uitzilopochtli  has  the  characteristics  of  a humming-bird, 
and,  indeed,  all  of  the  thirteen  gods  which  governed  the  hours 
of  the  day  are  figured  in  the  tonalamatl  of  the  Aubin  Collec- 
tion with  bird-disguises,  and  one  of  the  thirteen  heavens  of 
the  Mexicans  is  set  apart  for  bird-gods,  while  certain  other 
deities  appear  in  animal  forms.  For  example,  Tepeyollotl 
is  figured  as  a jaguar,  Tlaloc  and  Quetzalcoatl  have  serpen- 
tine characteristics,  Itzpapalotl  is  a butterfly-dragon,  Tezcat- 
lipoca  a spider,  a jaguar,  or  a turkey,  Mixcoatl  takes  deer 
shape,  and  so  on.  But  some  of  these  forms  are  probably 
symbolic  rather  than  “ totemic.”  The  cult  of  Nagualism,1 
a degraded  post-Colombian  form  of  the  old  religion,  was 
insistent  upon  the  connexion  of  its  votaries  with  an  animal 
spirit  or  familiar  from  an  early  period  of  their  lives — that  is, 
to  each  individual  a personal  “ totem  ” was  assigned,  pre- 
cisely as  is  the  case  among  many  North  American  tribes 
at  the  present  time  and  as  among  the  Lacandone  of  Yucatan. 

GROWTH  OF  THE  RAIN-CULT 

Enough  has  been  said  in  view  of  the  restricted  nature  of 
the  evidence,  to  prove  that  Mexican  religion  passed  through 
much  the  same  primitive  conditions  as  other  faiths.  Further 
evidence  on  this  point  will  be  adduced  as  the  gods  are 
severally  described.  We  may  now  proceed  to  examine  such 
proof  as  we  possess  of  the  onward  and  upward  progress  of 
the  cult  of  rain  and  growth  in  Mexico.  We  may,  perhaps, 
imagine  the  institution  of  tribal  or  village  rain  or  grain 
fetishes,  which  in  course  of  time  would  attain  godhead  by 
reason  of  popularity  or  supposed  auspiciousness.  The 
ministers  of  these  would  probably  bear  a strong  resemblance 

1 See  Brinton,  Nagualism. 


HUMAN  SACRIFICE 


19 


to  the  medicine-men  of  North  American  Indian  tribes. 
Warfare  undoubtedly  played  a great  part  in  the  fortunes 
of  these  local  cults.  Thus,  did  the  people  of  a certain  tribal 
god  triumph  in  feud  or  battle,  his  worship  would  almost 
certainly  be  enlarged  in  a territorial  sense.  But  such  a 
triumph  would  be  a small  incentive  to  further  conquest 
when  compared  with  the  absolute  necessity  for  war  engen- 
dered by  the  holy  law  that  captives  must  be  obtained  for 
purposes  of  sacrifice  to  the  tribal  deities. 

THE  NECESSITY  FOR  HUMAN  SACRIFICE 
The  origins  of  the  institution  of  human  sacrifice  in  Mexico 
are  obscure.  Native  mythology  attributed  its  invention  to 
a group  of  earth-goddesses  headed  by  Teteo  innan  or  Tlazol- 
teotl,  who  in  the  Calendar  year  “ eight-rabbit  ” came  to  the 
city  of  Tollan  or  Tula  from  the  Huaxtec  country  and,  sum- 
moning the  captives  whom  they  had  taken  in  that  land, 
said  to  them  : “ We  want  to  couple  the  earth  with  you,  we 
want  to  hold  a feast  with  you,  for  till  now  no  battle-offerings 
have  been  made  with  men.”  1 

This  myth  is,  perhaps,  setiological,  but  it  would  seem  to 
have  some  historical  basis.  Deeply  rooted  in  the  Mexican 
mind  was  the  idea  that  unless  the  gods  were  abundantly 
refreshed  with  human  blood  they  would  perish  of  hunger  and 
old  age  and  would  be  unable  to  undertake  their  hypothetical 
labours  in  connexion  with  the  growth  of  the  crops.  Whence 
came  this  idea  ? Undoubtedly  from  that  process  of  bar- 
baric reasoning  through  which  Mexican  man  had  convinced 
himself  that  the  amount  of  rainfall  would  be  in  ratio  to  the 
amount  of  blood  shed  sacrificially.  Seler  2 has  indicated  his 
belief  in  such  a process  of  reasoning  by  stating  that  “ the 
one  was  intended  to  draw  down  the  other,  the  blood  which  was 
offered  was  intended  to  bring  down  the  rain  upon  the  fields.” 
This,  then,  is  the  precise  nature  of  the  compact  between 
Mexican  man  and  his  gods,  Do  ut  des,  “ Give  us  rain,  and 
we  shall  give  you  blood.”  Once  this  is  understood  the  basic 

1 Anales  de  Quauhtitlan  (Brasseur,  Hist.  Nat.  Civ.  de  Mex.,  vol.  i,  pp.  400  ft.). 

s Codex  Vaticanus,  1902-3,  p.  75. 


20 


INTRODUCTORY 


nature  of  Mexican  religion  becomes  clear,  and  all  the  later 
additions  of  theology  and  priestly  invention  can  be  viewed 
as  mere  excrescences  and  ornaments  upon  the  simple  archi- 
tecture of  the  temple  of  the  rain-cult. 

THE  LATER  ELEMENTS  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 

The  evolution  of  a higher  cultus  is  frequently  identified 
with  a more  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  heavenly  bodies, 
but  it  is  not  generally  appreciated  or  understood  by  students 
of  Comparative  Religion  that  at  least  two  different  kinds  of 
conception  underlie  the  general  idea.  A luminary,  sun, 
moon,  or  star,  may  be  deified  and  achieve  godhead  by  reason 
of  striking  natural  characteristics,  or,  on  the  other  hand, 
it  may  be  identified  with  some  god  already  known.  Thus 
Mexican  myth,  as  related  to  Sahagun  by  the  natives,  asserted 
that  the  gods  met  at  Teotihuacan  and  told  how  two  of  their 
number,  Nanahuatl  and  Tecciztecatl,  sacrificed  themselves 
by  leaping  into  a great  fire,  becoming  the  sun  and  moon 
respectively.  The  remaining  gods,  sacrificing  themselves  also, 
“ conferred  life  upon  the  stars,”  that  is  they  became  identified 
with  the  several  stellar  constellations,  becoming  known  as  the 
Centzon  Mimixcoa  and  Centzon  Uitznaua,  or  “ Four  hundred 
Northerners  ” and  “ Four  hundred  Southerners,”  as  they 
occupied  the  sky  on  its  northern  or  southern  side.1 

Although  this  myth  and  a version  of  it  current  at  Texcuco 
and  given  by  Mendieta  in  his  Ilistoria  Ecclesiaslica  8 both 
represent  Nanahuatl  as  the  sun-god,  he  was  not  so  known  in 
Mexican  popular  religion  and  priestly  practice,  and  was 
indeed  a form  of  the  god  Xolotl,  a deity  of  obscure  character- 
istics. Tecciztecatl  certainly  was  regarded  as  the  moon- 
god,  but  the  solar  luminary  was  known  as  Tonatiuh  or 
Piltzintecutli.  As  has  already  been  stated,  there  are  sound 
reasons  for  the  belief  that  the  solar  cult  was  a relatively 

1 For  much  Mexican  star-lore  of  value  see  Seler’s  Venus  Period  in  the 
Picture-Writings  of  the  Borgia  Codex  Oroup,  translated  into  English  in 
Bulletin  28  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology,  pp.  355  ft'.  For  the  myth 
see  section  on  Cosmogony. 

! Bk.  ii,  c.  4. 


THE  SOLAR  CULTUS 


21 


late  institution  in  Mexico,  although  in  some  parts  of  the 
country  it  may  have  flourished  for  generations  before  it 
became  popular  in  Tenochtitlan.  Slightly  elaborating  our 
former  reasons  for  this  statement,  we  may  indicate  : (1)  The 
name  Tonatiuh  appears  in  the  myths  of  the  origin  of  the  sun 
as  that  of  the  luminary,  but  not  of  a god.  (2)  The  circum- 
stance that  Tonatiuh  was  regarded  by  the  Mexicans  as  a 
“ heaven,”  a Valhalla,  to  which  the  warriors  slain  in  sacrifice 
betook  themselves  after  death,  and  therefore  represented  a 
place  of  reward,  a class  of  myth  which  is  nearly  always  of 
comparatively  late  origin,  and  is  the  fruit  of  mature 
speculation.  (3)  The  fact  that  Tonatiuh  was  closely  identi- 
fied with  the  warrior  caste  and  therefore  with  human  sacrifice, 
which  was  a late  introduction  and  the  paramount  reason 
for  the  existence  of  that  caste.  (4)  That  the  original  Calen- 
dar was  a lunar  one.  But  these  and  other  considerations 
will  be  dealt  with  more  fully  when  we  undertake  the  elucida- 
tion of  the  sun-god’s  characteristics 

The  amalgamation  of  the  solar  cult  and  of  the  Quetzal- 
coatl  cult  (representing  the  later  and  earlier  “ civilized  ” 
elements  in  Mexican  religion)  with  the  rain-cult  is  not  an 
isolated  phenomenon  in  the  world’s  religious  history.  The 
analogy  of  the  fusion  of  the  Osirian  cult  of  Egypt  with  that 
of  Ra  will  occur  to  everyone  in  this  connexion,  and  as  the 
theology  of  the  priests  of  the  more  aristocratic  faith  became 
in  the  event  subsidiary  in  real  importance  to  that  of  the  far 
more  popular  Osirian  worship,  in  the  same  manner  the 
Quetzalcoatl  cult,  and  in  some  measure  the  solar,  were  of 
much  less  real  significance  in  Mexican  life  generally  than 
the  earlier  popular  belief.  The  solar  worship  seems  to  have 
successfully  and  naturally  identified  itself  with  the  rain- 
cult,  as  also  did  the  Quetzalcoatl  religion.  The  myth  which 
described  Quetzalcoatl  as  the  founder  or  inventor  of  the 
tonalamatl  or  Book  of  Fate  1 probably  records  an  effort  on 
the  part  of  his  priesthood  to  identify  their  cult  with  the 
popular  agricultural  religion  or  to  systematize  or  reduce  to 
symbolic  form  an  idea  which  until  that  time  had  probably 
1 See  Appendix  on  Tonalamatl. 


22 


INTRODUCTORY 


existed  in  an  uncertain  and  chaotic  condition  in  the  popular 
mind.  For  even  if  the  tonalomatl  were  introduced  from  the 
Zapotec  or  Mixtec  country  or  the  Maya  region,  as  is  generally 
supposed,  it  required  skilful  arrangement  to  make  it  sub- 
serve the  purposes  of  Aztec  religion.  The  priesthood  and 
cultus  of  Quetzalcoatl  were  widespread  throughout  Central 
America  and  Mexico,  and  its  ministers  appear  to  have 
adapted  themselves  with  skill  and  patience  to  the  conditions 
of  the  various  regions  to  which  they  penetrated,  the  result 
of  their  labours  never  being  quite  the  same  in  any  two 
regions.  It  is  remarkable,  too,  that,  probably  by  reason  of 
the  superior  erudition  and  ability  of  its  priesthood,  the 
caste  of  Quetzalcoatl  held  chief  sway  in  Mexican  ecclesias- 
tical government.1  But  a partial,  though  by  no  means  com- 
plete, hostility  to  human  sacrifice  and  ceremonial  cannibalism, 
a grudging  acquiescence  in  what  it  had,  in  all  likelihood, 
denounced  in  earlier  times,  gave  it  in  later  days  a somewhat 
aloof  and  separate  character. 

CULTURAL  ELEMENTS  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 

We  must  now  glance  briefly  at  such  evidences  as  we 
possess  of  the  distinct  racial  or  cultural  elements  -which 
assisted  in  the  development  of  Mexican  religion.  Three  such 
elements  appear  to  be  indicated.  It  would  seem  that  from 
an  early  period  a people  of  settled  and  agricultural  habits 
occupied  the  Mexican  Plateau.  These  were  probably  rela- 
tively aboriginal  to  the  Toltecs  and  may  have  been  of  Otomi 
or  Tarascan  blood,  and  to  them  I would  refer  the  original 
foundation  of  a rain-cult  having  Tlaloc  as  its  principal  deity. 
Tlaloc  was  unquestionably  one  of  the  most  venerable  gods 
of  Mexico,  indeed  he  is  the  only  god  who  can  be  identified 
with  certainty  in  the  remains  of  pre-Nahuan  date  at 
Teotihuacan.  Tradition  spoke  of  the  finding  of  an  ancient 
idol  representing  him  by  the  early  Chichimcc  immigrants.* 
At  least  five  of  the  yearly  festivals  were  celebrated  in  his 
honour,  and  ancient  sculptured  representations  of  him  have 

1 Sahagun,  bk.  ii.  Appendix. 

s Clavigero,  Sloria  del  Messico,  vol.  i,  bk.  vi,  p.  257  (English  translation). 


ORIGINAL  RAIN-CULT 


23 


been  found  in  Tarascan  territory,  in  Michoacan,  Teotihuacan, 
Teotitlan,  in  the  Zapotec  country  and  in  Guatemala,  thus 
affording  irrefragable  testimony  to  his  antiquity.  Rather 
later  than  the  culture  which  probably  founded  the  rain-cult 
(a  religion  necessary  and  indeed  inevitable  in  Mexico)  was 
the  Toltec  civilization,  which  regarded  Quetzalcoatl  as  its 
chiefest  divinity,  and  which  probably  was  brought  from  the 
Huaxtec  country.  But  the  Toltec  are  said  to  have  been 
of  Nahua  blood,  and  may  have  been  composed  of  a Nahua 
populace  and  a Huaxtec  or  proto-Maya  aristocracy.  The 
later  hordes  of  Nahua  (Chichimecs,  Azteca,  etc.)  found  these 
elements  already  settled  upon  the  land,  but  brought  with 
them  a religion  which,  if  it  was  destined  to  have  a powerful 
effect  upon  the  faith  of  the  agricultural  folk  with  "whom  they 
came  into  contact,  was  also  to  be  quite  as  strongly  influ- 
enced by  it. 

Reverting  to  the  conditions  prevailing  in  Mexico  prior 
to  the  entry  of  the  Chichimec  Nahua,  we  may  regard  the 
rain-cult  of  the  Tlaloc  religion  as  in  some  measure  resembling 
that  of  the  Pueblo  Indians  of  Northern  Mexico  and  Arizona 
at  the  present  time.  The  serpentine  character  of  its  prin- 
cipal deity,  the  appeal  for  ram  which  composes  the  basis  of 
most  of  the  prayers  to  him,  provide  strong  proofs  of  such  a 
similarity,  and,  as  has  been  said,  the  antiquity  of  the  rain 
religion  is  proved  by  the  discovery  of  early  sculptured  forms 
and  the  facts  adduced  above.  The  Tlaloc  religion  had  also 
been  able  in  some  degree  to  retain  its  own  sacrificial  customs, 
the  drowning  of  victims  being  practised  in  addition  to  the 
Nahua  method  of  slaughter  on  the  stone  of  sacrifice.  The 
date  of  the  introduction  of  the  religion  of  Quetzalcoatl  is 
generally  placed  at  the  middle  of  the  eighth  century  of  our 
era,  so  that  we  are  perhaps  justified  in  assuming  that  the 
faith  of  the  greater  portion  of  Anahuac  1 before  that  time 
had  as  its  basis  the  rain-cult,  as  represented  by  Tlaloc. 

The  religious  customs  of  those  peoples  who  were  relatively 
aboriginal  to  the  Nahua  support  the  theory  of  the  predomin- 
ance of  the  rain-cult  in  Mexico  from  a very  early  period, 

1 The  native  name  for  Mexico,  signifying  “ Place  upon  the  water.” 


24 


INTRODUCTORY 


and  Torquemada  states  that  during  seasons  of  drought  the 
Otomi  sought  to  propitiate  the  rain-gods  by  sacrificing  a 
virgin  on  the  top  of  a hill.1  Espinosa  says  that  the  Taras- 
cans  sacrificed  snakes  rather  than  human  beings— possibly 
for  the  same  reason  as  the  Esquimaux  beat  their  dogs  during 
an  eclipse,  in  order  that  the  Great  Dog  which  causes  the 
undesirable  phenomenon  may  desist,  the  Tarascans  probably 
killing  the  reptiles  in  question  in  order  that  the  Great  Snake 
might  relent  and  send  rain.8  The  towns  about  Chapala  paid 
divine  honours  to  the  spirit  of  the  adjacent  lake.  Late 
though  these  survivals  may  have  been  at  the  era  of  the 
Conquest,  yet  they  seem  to  have  enshrined  the  memory  of 
an  early  rain-cult  among  the  peoples  with  whom  they  were 
found,  and  many  others  could  be  adduced. 

THE  QUETZALCOATL  CULT 

The  appearance  of  the  Quetzalcoatl  cult  in  Mexico,  which 
would  seem  to  have  entered  the  country  at  some  time  about 
the  middle  of  the  eighth  century,  must  have  caused  very 
considerable  alterations  in  the  simple  and  probably  as  yet 
uninfluenced  rain  religion  which  it  found  in  occupancy. 
From  whatever  portion  of  the  Isthmian  tract  it  came,  one 
thing  regarding  it  is  positively  certain — that  it  introduced 
into  Mexico  the  rudiments  of  the  calendric  computation 
evolved  in  Central  America.  In  its  phase  as  imported  by 
the  apostles  of  the  Quetzalcoatl  religion,  it  seems  fairly 
certain  that  the  tonalamatl  was  of  the  nature  of  a lunar 
time-count,  and  the  probabilities  are  that  its  protagonists 
discovered  on  their  arrival  in  Anahuac  that  a count  similar  in 
character  was  in  use  among  the  priesthood  of  the  Tlaloc 
worshippers,  who  as  an  agricultural  people  could  hardly 
have  been  without  some  such  system  of  computation.  The 
Quetzalcoatl  faith,  however,  was  manifestly  of  a considerably 
higher  status  than  that  which  it  encountered,  as  is  obvious 
not  only  by  the  numerous  and  extraordinary  traditions 

1 Monarq.  Ind.,  tom.  ii,  p.  525. 

* Hist.  Mex.,  tom.  i,  pp.  291-2. 


QUETZALCOATL  AS  RAIN-PRIEST 


25 


regarding  the  Toltec  civilization,  but  the  actual  remains  it 
has  left.  It  is  clear  that,  whether  it  found  a calendar 
or  time-count  already  existing,  it  placated  aboriginal 
opinion  by  the  amalgamation  of  the  several  festivals  of  the 
rain-god  with  its  own.  The  fact  that  the  day-signs  of  the 
Mexican  calendar  or  tonalamatl  are  almost  identical  with 
those  of  the  Maya  tonalamatl  is  good  proof  that  the  former 
was  developed  from  the  latter  ; and  if  only  a small  propor- 
tion of  Toltec  deities  find  a place  in  its  monthly  festivals,  that 
would  seem  to  be  due  to  the  circumstance  that  later  Nahua 
demands  for  the  inclusion  of  their  tribal  deities  were  acceded 
to.  We  may,  perhaps,  imagine  the  early  tonalamatl  of  the 
Quetzalcoatl  missionaries  to  have  been  similar  in  form  to 
that  of  the  Maya — that  is,  it  must  have  been  almost  wholly 
concerned  with  the  festivals  of  deities  of  a purely  agricultural 
kind. 

But  the  religion  of  Quetzalcoatl,  as  observed  in  his  Yucatec 
form  of  Kukulkan  and  his  Guatemalan  variant  of  Gucumatz, 
bore  a close  resemblance  to  that  of  Tlaloc.  In  Yucatan 
Quetzalcoatl  was  regarded  by  priests  and  people  as  the  great 
rain-making  priest,  the  god  of  moisture,  whereas  in  Mexico 
he  is  merely  the  sweeper  of  the  ways  to  the  Tlaloc  deities 
of  rain.  This  is  surely  eloquent  of  the  fact  that  the  Tlaloc 
religion  was  not  only  of  greater  antiquity  in  Mexico,  but  that 
its  ministers  were  disinclined  to  permit  the  deity  of  the  new 
religion  to  adopt  a status  similar  to  that  of  their  own  god. 
With  true  priestly  diplomacy,  then,  it  would  seem  that  they 
temporized  by  affording  Quetzalcoatl  a status  as  the  great 
rain-making  priest,  a character  which  he  retained  to  the  last. 
Myth  certainly  alludes  to  Tlaloc  as  the  supplanter  of  Quetzal- 
coatl in  the  affections  of  the  goddess  Chalchihuitlicue  and  as 
robbing  the  peaceful  culture-hero  of  the  maize-plant  which  he 
had  discovered.  This  does  not  necessarily  signify  the  defeat 
of  an  older  religion  by  a more  novel  faith,  but  may  relate  to 
a successful  defence  by  the  more  ancient  cultus  and  its 
absorption  of  the  other. 

The  theory  of  the  amalgamation  of  the  Tlaloc  and  Quetzal- 
coatl cults  appears  to  me  to  be  in  some  measure  assisted  by 


26 


INTRODUCTORY 


the  circumstance  that  the  devotees  of  both  placed  a high 
value  upon  minerals  of  a green  colour.  The  word  chal- 
chihuitl  (“green  stone”),  of  such  common  occurrence  in 
the  works  of  the  Spanish  authors  who  wrote  on  Mexican 
affairs,  must  be  taken  as  applying  with  equal  force  to  jadeite, 
nephrite,  turquoise,  emerald,  chlormelanite,  green  quartz, 
precious  serpentine,  or,  indeed,  any  mineral  of  a green  shade. 
A tradition  existed  that  Quetzalcoatl  brought  the  use  and 
manipulation  of  jadeite  into  Mexico,  but  green  was  a salient 
hue  in  the  insignia  of  Tlaloc,  and  the  name  of  his  consort 
Chalchihuitlicue  (“greenstone  skirt”)  is  eloquent  of  his 
connexion  with  the  several  kinds  of  stones  which  the  Mexicans 
grouped  under  the  name  chalchihuitl.  Whatever  significance 
attached  to  the  colour  of  these  stones,  apart  from  their 
nature  as  precious  stones,  whether  or  not  they  were  symbolic 
of  water  or  verdure,  or  metal,  or  of  all  of  these  agencies, 
which  are  regarded  as  so  potent  by  primitive  peoples,  it  is 
apparent  that  both  cults  employed  them  symbolically  or 
pseudo-scientifically,  and  it  therefore  seems  probable  that 
each  of  these  religions  was  originally  connected  with  the 
worship  of  water,  and  therefore  the  influence  associated 
with  and  contained  in  water,  and  that  this  belief  would  render 
their  amalgamation  a process  of  little  difficulty. 

If,  however,  such  similarities  eventually  made  for  the 
union  of  the  cults,  traditions  were  not  lacking  regarding  their 
early  differences  or  hostilities.  As  has  been  said,  myths 
survived  into  historical  times,  which  stated  that  although 
Quetzalcoatl  had  succeeded  in  discovering  maize,  Tlaloc 
had  stolen  it  from  him  and  had  also  succeeded  in  alienating 
from  him  the  affection  of  Chalchihuitlicue,  who  had  originally 
been  regarded  as  the  wife  of  Quetzalcoatl.1  But  these  myths 
are  undeniably  of  late  origin.  Quetzalcoatl’s  status  as  a 
celibate  god  or  priest  would  scarcely  allow  his  name  to  be 
connected  with  matrimony,  and  it  is  plain  that  Chalchi- 
huitlicue, the  water  goddess,  is  in  a sense  merely  a personifica- 
tion of  the  chalchihuitl  stone,  which  was,  perhaps,  originally 
one  of  the  symbols  of  the  Quetzalcoatl  cult  and  which  later 

1 See  the  section  on  Tlaloc. 


THE  OBSIDIAN  RELIGION 


27 


became  personified  in  female  form,  thus  giving  rise  to  the 
myth  in  question.  Nor  do  these  tales  necessarily  prove  the 
priority  of  the  Quetzalcoatl  cult,  which  was  indeed  regarded  as 
responsible  for  practically  all  Mexican  civilization  and  which 
would  naturally  be  credited  with  the  introduction  of  the  use 
of  the  sacred  stones. 

THE  CULT  OF  OBSIDIAN 

But  if  the  later  Nahua  immigrants  also  came  to  regard  these 
chalchihuitl  stones  with  reverence,  at  the  period  of  their 
entrance  to  the  Mexican  plateau  they  paid  devotion  to  a 
mineral  of  a very  different  kind.  And  this  it  is  which  helps 
us  to  regard  their  faith  as  differing  entirely  from  those 
other  faiths  which  already  flourished  in  the  land.  The 
mineral  with  which  their  cult  was  so  closely  connected  was 
obsidian,  a vitreous  natural  glass  found  in  the  upper  volcanic 
strata  of  Mexico  and  northern  California,  which  flakes 
readily  from  the  core  by  pressure  and  gains  by  mere  fracture 
a razor-like  edge  of  considerable  penetrative  power.  The 
principal  quarry  of  this  volcanic  glass  was  the  mountain 
known  as  the  Cerro  de  las  Navajas  (“  hill  of  the  knives”) 
near  Timapan,  and  from  this  centre  the  itztli,  by  which  name 
obsidian  was  known  to  the  Mexicans,  was  widely  distributed 
by  barter  over  a very  considerable  area.  There  would  seem 
to  be  proof  that  this  mineral,  so  suitable  for  the  purposes 
of  the  nomadic  hunter,  was  anciently  known  far  to  the  north 
of  Mexico.  The  observations  of  Dr.  G.  M.  Dawson  1 in 
British  Columbia  satisfied  him  that  trading  intercourse  was 
engaged  in  by  the  coast  tribes  with  those  of  the  interior 
along  the  Frazer  River  Valley  and  far  to  the  south.  From 
the  remotest  times  embraced  in  their  native  traditions,  the 
Bilqula  of  Dean  Inlet  have  possessed  a trade  route  by  way 
of  the  Bella  Coola  River  to  the  Tinne  country,  along  which 
trail  broken  implements  and  chips  of  obsidian  have  been 
found.  Many  of  the  routes  in  British  Columbia  have  also 

1 Notes  on  the  Shush  wap  People  of  British  Columbia,  “ Proceedings  and 
Transactions  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Canada,”  1891,  vol.  ix,  sect.  ii. 
Montreal,  1892. 


28 


INTRODUCTORY 


yielded  chips  and  flakes  of  obsidian,  which,  the  Tinne  Indians 
stated,  was  obtained  from  a mountain  near  the  headwaters 
of  the  Salmon  River  (about  long.  125°  40',  lat.  52°  40'), 
formerly  resorted  to  for  the  purpose  of  procuring  the  mineral. 
The  Indian  name  of  this  mountain  is  Bece,  which,  Dr. 
Dawson  suggested,  is  the  same  with  the  “ Mexican  ” name 
for  knife,  itztli,  an  etymology  which  may  be  of  Nahuatlac 
origin.  Mr.  T.  C.  Weston,  of  the  Geological  Survey,  also 
noted  in  1883  the  finding  of  a flake  of  obsidian  in  connexion 
with  a layer  of  buffalo  bones  occurring  in  alluvium,  and 
evidently  of  considerable  antiquity,  near  Fort  McLeod, 
Alberta.  The  nearest  source  of  such  a material  is  the 
Yellowstone  Park  region.  The  coast  tribes  of  British 
Columbia  have  been  traders  for  untold  generations,  exchang- 
ing oolactin  oil  for  such  material  as  they  could  make  imple- 
ments from,  and  there  seems  to  be  no  doubt  that  the  Mound- 
builders  of  Ohio,  Wisconsin,  and  Kentucky  were  also 
acquainted  with  obsidian,  which  they  could  only  have 
obtained  by  the  process  of  barter.  It  was  thus  either  to  be 
found  in  the  regions  from  which  the  Nahua  are  thought  to 
have  come,  or  else  obtainable  through  the  channels  of 
trade. 

If,  then,  it  be  granted  that  the  Chichimec  Nahua  were 
acquainted  with  obsidian  and  its  properties  before  their 
entrance  upon  the  Plateau  of  Anahuac  (a  hypothesis  which 
is  strengthened  by  the  material  differences  of  workmanship 
between  their  tools  and  weapons  made  of  this  material  and 
those  of  the  aboriginal  peoples  of  Mexico),  sufficient  time 
had  elapsed  for  their  development  of  a cult,  which,  at  the 
era  of  the  Conquest,  exhibited  traces  of  a very  considerable 
antiquity.  It  was,  naturally,  as  a hunting  people  that 
they  employed  weapons  of  obsidian.  The  herds  of  deer  on 
the  flesh  of  which  they  chiefly  lived  roamed  the  steppes, 
and  proof  abounds  that  the  customs  of  the  chase  strongly 
influenced  the  religious  ideas  of  the  early  Nahua.  Certain 
of  their  gods,  indeed,  seem  to  have  been  developed  from 
cervine  forms,  for  among  barbarous  races  the  animal  wor- 
shipped is  that  which  provides  the  tribe  with  its  staple  food, 


OBSIDIAN  GODS 


29 


or,  more  correctly,  a great  eponymous  figure  of  that  animal 
is  adored — for  example,  the  Great  Deer,  who  sends  the 
smaller  deer  to  keep  the  savage  in  life.  In  like  manner 
barbarous  fisherfolk  are  wont  to  worship  the  Great  Fish, 
which  sends  them  its  progeny  or  its  subjects  to  serve  as 
food.  These  deer  gods  or  hunting  gods  in  some  way  con- 
nected with  the  deer — Itzpapalotl,  Itzcueye,  Mixcoatl, 
Camaxtli — had  also  stellar  or  solar  attributes.  The  deer  was 
slain  by  the  obsidian  weapon,  which,  therefore,  came  to  be 
regarded  as  the  magical  weapon,  that  by  which  food  was 
procured.  In  the  course  of  time  it  assumed  a sacred  signi- 
ficance, the  hunting  gods  themselves  came  to  wield  it,  and  it 
was  thought  of  as  coming  from  the  stars  or  the  heavens  where 
the  gods  dwelt,  in  precisely  the  same  manner  as  flint  arrow- 
heads were  regarded  by  the  peasantry  of  Europe  as  “ elf- 
arrows  ” or  “ thunder-stones  ” — that  is,  as  something  super- 
natural, falling  from  above. 

But  the  obsidian  itself  became  deified  as  Tezcatlipoca. 

I have  retained  the  full  proof  of  this  assertion  for  the  section 
which  treats  of  that  god,  and  must  here  content  myself  with 
a summary  of  it.  The  whole  cult  of  obsidian  centred  in  the 
personality  of  Tezcatlipoca.  His  idol  was  made  of  that 
stone,  and  in  Codex  Borbonicus  his  sandals  are  painted  with 
the  zigzag  line  of  the  obsidian  snake.  In  his  variant  of  Itztli 
(obsidian)  he  was  the  god  of  the  sacrificial  knife  of  obsidian, 
and  in  certain  codices  he  is  represented  as  having  such  a 
knife  in  place  of  a foot.  From  this  stone,  too,  divinatory 
mirrors  were  made,  one  of  which  was  held  by  the  idols  of 
Tezcatlipoca  and  served  as  the  mirror  or  scrying-stone  in 
which  he  witnessed  the  doings  of  mankind.  Obsidian,  the 
great  life-giver,  food-getter,  blood-provider,  became  identified 
in  the  form  of  this  god  with  the  cause  or  breath  of  life,  which, 
in  turn,  was  identified  with  the  wind,  and  therefore  it  came 
to  be  classed  among  those  magical  stones  which  in  some 
mysterious  manner  are  considered  capable  of  raising  a tempest. 
In  this  manner  Tezcatlipoca  came  to  be  regarded  as  a god  of 
wind,  and  has  been  identified  with  the  Hurakan  of  the 
Quiches  of  Guatemala,  from  whose  name  the  expression 


30 


INTRODUCTORY 


“ hurricane  ” has  been  borrowed  and  who  was  probably 
introduced  into  Central  America  by  the  Nahua. 

When  the  nomadic  Chiehimec  adopted  an  agricultural 
condition,  obsidian  had  doubtless  been  regarded  as  sacred 
for  many  generations.  It  was  by  virtue  of  this  magical  stone 
that  the  nourishment  of  the  gods  was  maintained  by  the 
sacrifice  of  deer  ; but  when  the  Chiehimec  came  to  embrace 
a more  settled  existence  within  an  agricultural  community 
where  deer  must  certainly  have  been  more  scarce,  the  nourish- 
ment of  the  gods  had  necessarily  to  be  maintained  by  other 
means.  The  manner  in  which  this  was  effected  is  quite 
clear.  Slaves  and  war-captives  were  sacrificed  instead  of 
beasts  of  the  chase,  and  at  the  festival  of  Mixcoatl,  the 
greatest  of  the  Chiehimec  gods,  women  were  sacrificed  in 
the  place  of  deer,  and  after  being  slain  were  carried  down 
the  steps  of  the  teocalli , their  wrists  and  ankles  tied  together 
precisely  in  the  manner  in  which  a deer  is  trussed  by  the 
hunter.1  The  transition  from  deer-sacrifice  to  a human 
holocaust  and  from  the  hunting  to  the  agricultural  condition 
is  well  illustrated  by  an  ancient  hymn  relating  to  the  goddess 
Itzpapalotl  (“Obsidian  Butterfly”),  who  was  associated 
with  Mixcoatl. 

“ O,  she  has  become  a goddess  of  the  melon  cactus. 

Our  Mother  Itzpapalotl,  the  obsidian  butterfly. 

Her  food  is  on  the  Nine  Plains, 

She  was  nurtured  on  the  hearts  of  deer, 

Our  Mother,  the  earth-goddess.” 

The  inference  in  these  lines  seems  to  be  that  whereas  Itzpa- 
palotl was  formerly  a goddess  of  the  Chiehimec  nomads  of 
the  steppes,  who  sacrificed  deer  to  her,  she  has  now  become 
the  deity  of  the  melon-cactus  patch  and  an  agricultural 
community.  Her  first  human  victim  is  also  mentioned  by 
Camargo,*  who  states  that  the  Chiehimec,  coming  to  the 
province  of  Tepeueuec,  sacrificed  a victim  to  her  by  shooting 
him  with  arrows.  Itzpapalotl  has  more  than  one  cervine 
attribute.’ 

1 Sahagun,  Hist.  Gen.,  bk.  ii,  c.  xiv.  1 Hist,  de  Tlaxcallan,  c.  v. 

3 See  Section  on  Itzpapalotl. 


OBSIDIAN  AS  LIFE-SUBSTANCE 


31 


Mexican  tradition  makes  it  very  plain  that  obsidian, 
because  of  its  blood-procuring  properties,  came  to  be  regarded 
as  the  source  of  all  life,  as  the  very  principle  of  existence. 
Tonacaciuatl,  the  creative  goddess,  as  we  shall  see,  gave 
birth  to  an  obsidian  knife  from  which  sprang  sixteen  hundred 
demigods  who  peopled  the  earth,1  and  the  infant  which  the 
goddess  Ciuacoatl  leaves  in  the  cradle  in  the  market-place 
undergoes  metamorphosis  into  an  obsidian  knife.*  As  the 
Codices  show,  grain  is  often  pictured  in  the  form  of  the  obsi- 
dian knife  of  sacrifice.  Just  as  in  many  myths,  both  in  the 
Old  World  and  the  New,  flint  was  regarded  as  the  great 
fertilizer  because  of  its  supposed  connexion  with  the  lightning, 
so  was  obsidian.  Thus  all  the  elements  which  go  to  make 
for  growth  and  life  were  regarded  as  having  a connexion 
with  this  mineral,  even  the  sun  itself,  as  we  shall  see,  being 
identified  with  the  Mirror  of  Tezcatlipoca.  The  idea  that 
the  sun  could  not  live  without  human  blood  was  a purely 
Nahua  conception,  arising  out  of  an  earlier  belief  that  it 
must  be  nourished  upon  the  blood  of  beasts.  Of  the  transi- 
tional process  abundant  proof  exists.  The  hunter’s  obsidian 
weapon  which  supplied  the  necessary  pabulum  became  in 
turn  the  weapon  of  the  warrior  who  procured  victims  for  the 
holocaust,  and  the  sacred  knife  of  the  priest  who  sacrificed 
them  to  the  deity.  Obsidian  was  thus  chiefly  the  war  weapon 
and  the  sacrificial  weapon,  but  the  traditions  relating  to  it 
refer  to  practically  all  the  offices  of  human  art,  industry,  and 
activity  generally. 

Lest  this  hypothesis  seem  overstrained,  analogies  may  be 
indicated.  That  which  is  initially  sacred  in  a primitive 
cult  frequently  comes  to  have  interrelations  with  the  whole 
environment  of  its  deities.  Thus  the  worship  of  the  oak  by 
the  Druids  appears  to  have  given  an  oak-like  virtue  to  the 
oracular  birds  which  dwelt  in  its  branches,  to  the  soil  from 
which  it  grew,  to  the  sky  above  it,  to  the  priests  who  minis- 
tered to  it  and  to  the  sacred  implements  they  employed. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  the  oak-cult  of  Zeus  and  the  vine- 

1 See  chapter  on  Cosmogony. 

1 See  Sahagun,  bk.  i,  c.  6. 


32 


INTRODUCTORY 


cult  of  Dionysos.  The  numerous  traditions  which  cluster 
round  the  ceremonial  use  of  jade  in  China  are  eloquent  of 
such  a tendency.  Thus  trees,  plants,  animals,  and  natural 
objects  are  all  in  a manner  identified  and  connected  with  the 
beautiful  jade  stone  in  its  character  as  an  imparter  of  vitality. 
Thus  in  the  great  worship  of  the  gods  whose  cult  was  con- 
nected with  obsidian,  well-nigh  everything  with  which  it 
had  interrelations  came  to  partake  of  the  nature  of  obsidian 
— grain,  the  earth,  the  atmosphere,  the  sun,  the  stars,  the 
priesthood,  blood,  and  rain. 

The  process  by  which  this  Nahua  cult  became  amalgamated 
with  those  of  Tlaloc  and  Quetzalcoatl  seems  fairly  clear. 
Upon  their  settlement  on  the  Plateau  of  Anahuac  it  is  plain 
from  the  terms  of  certain  myths  that  the  Nahua  did  not 
regard  the  cult  of  Quetzalcoatl  in  any  friendly  manner. 
Tezcatlipoca  is  spoken  of  as  driving  him  from  the  country, 
and  it  is  probable  that  to  begin  with  a certain  amount  of 
persecution  may  have  been  inflicted  upon  his  adherents. 
But  the  Nahua  would  undoubtedly  come  to  recognize  the 
value  of  the  calendar  system  connected  with  his  cult,  and  it 
is  clear  that  they  did  so  from  the  fact  that  we  find  included 
in  it  certain  of  their  principal  gods.  The  final  process  of 
amalgamation  probably  took  place  during  the  eleventh  and 
twelfth  centuries,  for,  as  seen  at  the  Conquest  period,  the 
union  of  the  three  great  cults  of  Mexico  must  have  occupied 
several  centuries.  Such  a duration  of  time  was  necessary 
for  the  development  of  a homogeneous  and  involved  symbo- 
lism, which  was  obviously  based  on  a tacit  recognition  of 
the  unity  of  the  Mexican  faith.  Initial  disparities  seem  to 
be  indicated  principally  by  ancient  traditions,  of  which 
perhaps  the  most  notable  was  that  which  spoke  of  the 
different  heavens  of  the  three  original  cults,  the  Tlalocan  of 
the  worshippers  of  Tlaloc,  the  Tlapallan  or  over-sea  paradise 
of  the  Quetzalcoatl  cult,  and  the  Sun-house  or  Valhalla  of 
the  Nahua.  A striking  proof  of  the  adjustment  of  the 
chronology  of  the  three  cults  may  perhaps  be  found  in  the 
myths  which  speak  of  the  existence  of  several  “ suns  ” or 
ages  prior  to  the  historical  era,  the  “ rulers  ” or  patrons  of 


ESOTERIC  INFLUENCES 


33 


which  were,  according  to  the  most  trustworthy  sources, 
Tezcatlipoca,  Quetzalcoatl,  Tlaloc,  and  Chalchihuitlicue, 
goddess  of  the  Tlaloc  cult.1 

The  attribution  of  higher  and  abstract  qualities  to  the 
gods  was  probably  of  comparatively  late  origin.  Especially 
is  this  to  be  observed  in  the  case  of  Tezcatlipoca,  to  whom, 
at  the  period  of  the  Conquest,  we  find  attributed  such  a 
bewildering  array  of  qualities,  both  concrete  and  abstract, 
lofty  and  the  reverse,  as  would  seem  to  indicate  that,  had 
European  influences  failed  to  penetrate  to  Anahuac,  his 
worship  might  have  reached  the  monotheistic  stage,  and  in 
time  have  overshadowed  that  of  the  other  gods  of  the  Mexican 
pantheon.  Undoubtedly,  too,  the  priesthood,  and  probably 
the  nobility,  fostered  a more  esoteric  and  loftier  type  of 
religion  than  was  undcrstanded  of  the  people,  and  good 
proof  (which  is  by  no  means  confined  to  the  rather  doubtful 
circumstance  that  Nezahualcoyotl  of  Texcuco  built  a temple 
to  the  “Unknown  God”)  is  forthcoming  that  theological 
questions  of  greater  or  less  complexity  had  begun  to  exercise 
the  minds  of  the  hierarchy. 

UNITY  OF  RELIGIOUS  CONCEPTION  THROUGHOUT 
MEXICO 

At  the  epoch  of  the  Conquest  it  is  abundantly  clear  that 
the  Azteca  had  succeeded  in  establishing  their  tribal  cult, 
enriched  with  the  beliefs  of  the  peoples  they  had  conquered, 
over  a wide  area.  They  had  adopted  into  their  pantheon 
such  deities  of  the  surrounding  tribes  as  appealed  to  their 
imagination,  or  were  too  powerful  to  be  ignored,  and  actually 
“ imprisoned  ” many  others  of  lesser  puissance,  whose  idols 
were  kept  in  conlinement  in  a building  within  the  precincts 
of  the  great  temple  at  Mexico-Tenochtitlan.* 

Within  the  historical  period  but  little  radical  difference 
existed  between  the  several  Mexican  cults,  which  all  appear 
to  have  been  affected  by  a common  influence.  We  observe, 
therefore,  the  phenomenon  of  certain  early  religious  forms 

1 See  chapter  on  Cosmogony. 

2 Torquemada,  bk.  viii,  c.  13. 


3 


34 


INTRODUCTORY 


originating  under  common  influences,  separated  for  centuries 
and  profoundly  altered  by  immigrant  forces,  at  length  brought 
together  again  by  the  amalgamating  powers  of  conquest 
under  the  influence  of  one  central  and  paramount  cult,  only, 
when  once  more  united,  to  find  a common  destruction  at  the 
hands  of  the  ministers  of  an  alien  and  invading  faith. 

At  the  period  of  the  Conquest,  then,  we  find  the  Mexican 
religion  relatively  homogeneous  in  character,  with  a wide- 
spread ascendancy,  its  provincial  activities  exhibiting  differ- 
ences of  little  more  than  local  kind.  Even  in  its  most  far- 
flung  manifestations,  indeed,  it  never  showed  such  variations 
as  permit  us  to  say  that  the  most  dissimilar  or  distant  variety 
of  the  cult  entirely  differed  from  the  metropolitan  exemplar.1 
This  being  so,  we  are  as  fully  justified  in  speaking  of  a Mexican 
religion  as  wre  are  in  alluding  to  an  Italic  or  a Hellenic  religion, 
and  perhaps  more  so  than  in  extending  the  analogy  to  Egypt, 
where  anything  like  homogeneity  in  either  theology  or  popular 
worship  appears  never  to  have  been  attained.  We  find, 
then,  that  the  religion  of  ancient  Mexico,  as  known  at  the 
Conquest  period,  was  the  outcome  of  later  religious  and 
ethical  impulses  brought  to  bear  upon  a simple  rain-cult, 
which,  judging  from  the  atmospheric  conditions  essential 
to  it,  must  have  been  indigenous  to  the  country.  Although 
the  cults  of  its  several  deities  still  retained  some  measure  of 
distinctiveness,  all  had  long  before  been  amalgamated  in 
what  was  really  a national  faith.  There  are  signs,  too,  that 
a fully  developed  pantheon  had  been  evolved,  which 
mirrored  an  elaborate  social  system  in  caste,  rank,  and 
guild,  but  the  mythical  material  from  which  this  might  have 
been  reconstructed  is  only  partly  available.  We  find,  too, 
that  practically  every  god  in  the  Mexican  hierarchy,  what- 
ever his  original  status,  was  in  some  manner  connected  with 
the  rain-cult.  Indeed,  the  rain-cult  is  the  central  and 
coalescing  factor  in  Mexican  religion,  its  nucleus  and  founda- 
tion. As  might  be  expected,  most  of  the  deities  of  agricultural 

1 Although  some  of  the  old  authors,  Bernal  Diaz  for  instance,  say  explicitly 
that  the  gods  of  one  city  were  not  recognized  in  another,  in  effect  they  were, 
only  under  other  names. 


BEAUTIES  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 


35 


growth  appear  to  be  of  either  Toltec  or  alien  origin.  Thus, 
Chicomecoatl  was  Toltec,  while  Tlazolteotl,  Xochiquetzal, 
Xilonen,  Cinteotl,  and  Xipe  were  all  alien  deities  of  the  older 
settled  peoples,  but  what  their  relationship  to  the  three  great 
cults  of  Mexico  may  have  been  is  not  apparent.  Most  of 
these  deities  appear  in  the  tonalamatl,  so  that  their  worship 
must  have  been  adopted  at  a comparatively  early  date. 

Students  of  religious  phenomena  not  infrequently  show 
distaste  for  the  deeper  consideration  of  the  Mexican  faith, 
not  only  because  of  the  difficulties  which  beset  the  fuller 
study  of  this  interesting  phase  of  human  belief  in  the  eternal 
verities,  but  also,  perhaps,  because  of  the  “ diabolic  ” reputa- 
tion which  it  has  achieved,  and  the  grisly  horrors  to 
which  it  is  thought  those  who  examine  it  must  perforce 
accustom  themselves.  It  is  certainly  not  the  most  obviously 
prepossessing  of  the  world’s  religions.  Yet  if  a due  allow- 
ance be  made  for  the  earnestness  of  its  priests  and  people 
in  the  strict  observance  of  a system  the  hereditary  burden 
of  which  no  one  man  or  generation  could  hope  to  remove, 
and  the  religion  of  the  Azteca  be  viewed  in  a liberal  and  toler- 
ant spirit,  those  who  are  sufficiently  painstaking  in  their 
scrutiny  of  it  will  in  time  find  themselves  richly  rewarded. 
Not  only  does  it  abound  in  valuable  evidences  for  the  enrich- 
ment of  the  study  of  religious  science  and  tradition,  but  by 
degrees  its  astonishing  beauty  of  colour  and  wealth  of  sym- 
bolic variety  will  appeal  to  the  student  with  all  the  enchant- 
ment of  discovery.  The  echoes  of  the  sacred  drum  of 
serpent-skin  reverberating  from  the  lofty  pyramid  of  Uitzilo- 
pochtli,  and  passing  above  the  mysterious  city  of  Tenoch- 
titlan  with  all  the  majesty  of  Olympic  thunder,  will  seem  not 
less  eloquent  of  the  soul  of  a vanished  faith  than  do  the 
memories  of  the  choral  chants  of  Hellas.  And  if  the  recol- 
lection of  the  picturesque  but  terrible  rites  of  this  gifted, 
imaginative,  and  not  undistinguished  people  harrows  the 
feelings,  does  it  not  arouse  in  us  that  fatal  consciousness  of 
man’s  helplessness  before  the  gods,  which  primitive  religion 
invariably  professes  and  which  reason  almost  seems  to  uphold  ? 


CHAPTER  II 
COSMOGONY 


ACCOUNTS  of  the  creation  of  the  world  and  of  man, 
even  as  handed  down  to  us  by  those  writers  on 
Mexican  mythology  who  had  the  best  opportuni- 
ties for  collecting  them,  are  prone  to  vagueness,  and  differ 
so  materially  one  from  another  that  we  will  probably  not 
be  in  error  if  we  impute  their  inconsistencies  to  a variety  of 
local  origins.  As  regards  the  agencies  by  whom  the  creation 
or  reconstruction  of  the  earth  was  accomplished,  we  are  not 
in  doubt,  for  certain  passages  in  the  Interpretative  Codices 
find  almost  exact  corroboration  in  the  creation  story  contained 
in  the  Popol  Vuh,  the  mythic  book  of  the  Quiche  of  Guate- 
mala (which  was  unknown  to  the  interpreters  of  the  Mexican 
Codices),  as  well  as  in  similar  works  of  Maya  origin. 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  states 
that  the  god  Tonacatecutli,  “ when  it  appeared  good  to  him, 
breathed  and  divided  the  waters  of  the  heavens  and  the 
earth,  which  at  first  were  all  confused  together,  and  disposed 
them  as  they  now  are.”  1 Further,  “ he  breathed  and  begot 
Quetzalcoatl,  not  by  connexion  with  a woman,  but  by  his 
breath  alone.”  5 The  first  of  these  deities,  and  his  female 
counterpart  Tonacaciuatl,  are  almost  certainly  spoken  of 
in  the  Popol  Vuh  as  “ the  serpents  covered  with  green 
feathers,”  which,  farther  on  in  the  Quiche  work,  are  alluded 
to  as  Xpiyacoc  and  Xmucane,  gods  who  are  generally 
admitted  to  be  the  same  as  the  Mexican  Oxomoco  and 
Cipactonal,  who,  again,  are  either  identical  with  or  closely 
connected  with  Tonacatecutli  and  his  spouse.5  Quetzalcoatl, 

1 Translation  in  Kingsborough,  vol.  vi,  p.  198. 

* Op.  cit.,  p.  207. 

3 L.  Spence,  The  Popol  Vuh  (1908),  description  of  bk.  i ; Brasseur  de  Bour- 
bourg,  Le  Vuh  Popol,  Paris,  1861. 


CREATIVE  GODS 


37 


too,  appears  in  the  Popol  Vuh  as  Gucumatz,  a known  Quiche 
equivalent  or  translation  of  his  name,  for  as  “ wind  ” or 
“ breath  ” he  was  also  thought  of  as  “ spirit  ” or  “ life,” 
and  probably  his  fecundating  efficacy  as  a water-bearing  god 
was  also  taken  into  consideration.  In  the  Sahagun  MS. 
in  the  Academia  de  la  Historia,  Madrid,  is  a passage  which 
reads  when  translated  : “ They  say  that  he  made,  created, 
and  formed  us  whose  creatures  we  are,  Topiltzin  Quetzalcoatl, 
and  he  made  the  heaven,  the  sun,  the  earth.”  The  Anales 
de  Quauhtitlan  or  Codex  Chimalpopca ,l  too,  relates  how 
Quetzalcoatl  created  the  four  classes  of  humanity,  the  men 
of  the  four  “ suns  ” or  periods  of  the  world,  and  how  men 
were  made  by  him  on  the  day  “ 7 wind,”  and,  as  we  shall 
see,  the  work  of  creation  in  detail  is  alluded  to  in  the 
Historia  de  los  Mexicanos  por  svs  Pinluras,  as  effected  by 
him  and  by  Tezcatlipoca.  Lastly,  we  find  in  the  Creative 
Council  of  the  Quiche  heaven,  Hurakan,  who  is  none  other 
than  Tezcatlipoca,  a deity  closely  connected  with  Quetzal- 
coatl in  at  least  one  Mexican  creation  myth. 

THE  “AGES”  OF  MEXICAN  COSMOGONY 

Having  thus  satisfied  ourselves  regarding  the  creative 
personnel  of  the  Mexican  pantheon,  and  preserving  further 
proof  of  the  constructive  character  of  certain  of  these  deities 
until  we  come  to  discuss  them  individually,  we  may  pro- 
ceed to  examine  such  myths  as  tell  of  the  formation  of  the 
world.  In  the  belief  of  the  Mexicans  the  earth  was  not 
destined  to  receive  its  present  inhabitants,  although  occupied 
by  man-like  beings,  until  it  had  undergone  a series  of  cata- 
clysms or  partial  destructions,  regarding  the  precise  incidence 
and  even  the  number  of  which  there  is  a marked  difference 
of  opinion  on  the  part  of  the  older  authorities. 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  V aiicanus  states  that  “ in 
the  first  age  ” (or  “ Sun,”  as  these  periods  were  called  by  the 
Nahua  of  Mexico)  “ water  reigned  until  at  last  it  destroyed 

1 An  important  work  republished  with  a Latin  translation  by  Dr.  W. 
Lehmann  under  the  title  of  Traditions  des  anciens  Mexicains  (Jour.  Soc. 
Amer.  Paris,  n.s.,  vol.  iii.  Paris,  1906,  pp.  239-298). 


38 


COSMOGONY 


the  world.  . . . This  age,  according  to  their  computation, 
lasted  4,008  years,  and  on  the  occurrence  of  that  great  deluge 
they  say  that  men  were  changed  into  fish,  named  Tlacamichin, 
which  signifies  men-fish.”  1 The  second  age,  he  tells  us, 
lasted  for  4,010  years  and  the  world  was  ended  by  the  force 
of  violent  winds,  the  catastrophe  concluding  by  the 
transformation  of  men  into  apes.  The  third  age  endured 
for  4,801  years  and  ended  in  a universal  fire,  and  in  the 
fourth,  which  occupied  5,042  years,  the  human  race,  which 
had  never  ceased  to  transmit  a few  survivors  from  one 
of  these  epochs  to  the  next,  was  almost  destroyed  by 
famine. 

In  his  Historia  Chichimeca  2 Ixtlilxochitl  calls  the  first 
of  these  epochs  Atonatiuh  (Water  Sun),  in  which  all  men 
perished  by  a great  inundation.  The  second  epoch,  Tlachi- 
tonaiiuh  (Earth  Sun),  ended  with  violent  earthquakes.  In 
this  age  lived  gigantic  beings  called  Quin  antes . The  third 
epoch  was  Ecatonatiuh,  or  “ Sun  of  Wind,”  in  which  edifices, 
trees,  and  men  were  nearly  all  destroyed  by  hurricanes,  those 
who  remained  being  changed  into  creatures  of  an  intelligence 
so  low  as  to  be  almost  indistinguishable  from  monkeys.2 * * * 
The  Texcucan  chronicler  does  not  furnish  us  with  the  name 
of  the  present  age  in  his  Historia,  nor  in  his  Relaciones,* 
where,  however,  we  receive  fuller  information  regarding  the 
first  three  epochs,  which  he  succeeds  in  carelessly  transposing, 
giving  the  third  the  second  place. 

Camargo  6 would  almost  appear  to  have  been  indebted  to 
Ixtlilxochitl  for  his  version  of  the  creation  myth,  but  he 
seems  to  have  been  under  the  impression  that  only  two  of 
the  epochs  were  ended.  That  three  past  cataclysms  had 
taken  place  and  that  four  ages  in  all  had  occurred  is,  indeed, 
the  most  generally  favoured  version  of  the  story,  but  some 

1 Kingsborough’s  translation,  vol.  vi,  p.  171. 

2 Chavero’s  edition,  Mexico,  1892,  p.  21. 

:See  the  Popol  Vuh,  bk.  i.,  for  a Quiche  analogy  to  this  tale  of  human 

degradation. 

* Chavero’s  edition,  Mexico,  1891,  pp.  ii  ff. 

6 Hist,  de  Tlaxcala,  in  Temaux-Compan’s  Voyages,  tom.  lxxxvi,  p.  5 ; also 
edition  by  A.  Chavero,  Mexico,  1892. 


TIIE  GREAT  CALENDAR  .STONE  OF  MEXICO 
(Now  In  the  Museo  National,  Mexico.) 


“OFFICIAL”  CREATION  MYTH 


89 


authorities  seem  to  have  been  of  the  opinion  that  a myth 
was  current  among  the  Mexican  people  which  stated  that 
no  less  that  five  epochs  had  taken  place  in  the  history  of  the 
world.  Gama,  Gomara,  and  Humboldt  share  this  view,  and 
Mendieta  is  of  opinion  that  five  “ suns  ” existed  before  the 
present  era,  all  of  which  were  of  such  noxious  character  that 
the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  languished  and  perished  through 
their  baneful  influence. 

But  we  have  more  stable  authority  for  the  sequence 
of  these  “ suns  ” or  epochs.  It  is  probable  that  this  cata- 
clysmic theory  -was  in  vogue  among  the  Nahua  for  genera- 
tions before  it  received  a more  or  less  definite  form,  and, 
indeed,  Veytia  1 and  Ixtlilxochitl  8 state  that  the  number 
of  suns  was  agreed  upon  at  a meeting  of  native  astronomers 
within  traditional  memory.  We  are  probably  following  the 
official  version  of  the  myth  if  we  accept  that  to  which  the 
so-called  calendar-stone  of  Mexico  gives  sculptured  form  and 
which  may  be  interpreted  as  follows  : While  the  world  was 
still  wrapped  in  primeval  gloom,  the  god  Tezcatlipoca  trans- 
formed himself  into  the  sun.  This  epoch,  which  was  known 
as  Naui  Oceloil  or  “ Four  Jaguar,”  ended  in  the  destruction 
of  humanity  and  the  race  of  giants  who  then  inhabited  the 
earth  by  fierce  jaguars.  Quetzalcoatl  became  the  second 
sun,  and  the  age  of  Naui  Eecatl  or  “ Four  Wind  ” ended  in 
violent  hurricanes,  during  which  men  were  transformed  into 
monkeys.  Tlaloc  then  took  upon  himself  the  task  of  provid- 
ing the  world  with  light,  and  his  epoch  of  Naui  Quiauitl  or 
“ Four  Rain”  came  to  an  end  by  means  of  a deluge  of  fire. 
The  goddess  Chalchihuitlicue  represented  the  sun  of  the  age 
Naui  Atly  “ Four  Water,”  at  the  end  of  which  there  descended 
a deluge  in  which  men  were  changed  into  fishes.  Later 
there  appeared  the  present  sun,  Naui  Olin,  which,  it  was 
believed,  would  end  in  earthquakes. 

THE  MAKING  OF  THE  EARTH 

The  second  chapter  of  the  Historia  de  los  Mexicanos  por 

1 Hist.  Antigua  de  Mexico,  bk.  i,  c.  4. 

2 First  Relacion. 


40 


COSMOGONY 


sus  Pinturas,  a precis  of  the  opening  chapters  of  which  is 
given  farther  on,  states  that  the  gods  “ created  a great  fish 
which  is  called  the  Cipactli,  which  is  like  the  cayman  [alli- 
gator], and  of  this  fish  they  made  the  earth.” 

The  description  of  the  earth-monster,  as  it  appears  in  the 
Codices,  as  an  alligator  or  sword-fish  is,  however,  by  no 
means  convincing.  Moreover,  the  sculptured  representation 
of  the  earth-monster  in  Maya  art,  especially  in  such  examples 
as  that  from  Copan,  is  essentially  dragon-like  in  form,  and 
there  would  seem  to  be  little  difficulty  in  classing  the  Cipactli 
as  an  earth-dragon,  similar  in  nature  to  the  cosmic  monster  of 
Chinese  art  and  mythology.  The  fact,  too,  that  in  the  native 
paintings  we  frequently  observe  the  sun-god  in  the  act  of 
being  swallowed  by  the  Cipactli  strengthens  the  analogy 
with  the  Chinese  example. 

THE  PEOPLING  OF  THE  EARTH 

The  precise  manner  in  which  the  earth  was  peopled  by  the 
gods  is  also  a subject  concerning  which  great  variety  of 
opinion  is  shown  by  the  older  writers  on  Mexican  beliefs,  and, 
as  in  the  case  of  the  cosmogonic  myth  proper,  this  is  probably 
to  be  accounted  for  by  local  variation.  Mendicta  1 is  our 
authority  for  a conception  which  appears  to  have  gained 
wide  currency  in  many  parts  of  Mexico.  There  is  good 
evidence  that  he  in  turn  received  it  from  Andres  de  Olmos, 
a friar  of  great  literary  integrity  and  linguistic  capability, 
whose  writings  we  may  regard  with  credence  and  confidence. 
The  myth  opens  in  the  heavenly  abode  of  the  gods  Citlalatonac 
and  Citlalicue,  who  were  also  known  as  Ometecutli  and 
Omecihuatl  or  Tonacatecutli  and  Tonacaciuatl,  and  whom 
the  Mexicans  regarded  as  the  eventual  sources  of  all  human 
life.  The  goddess  gave  birth  to  a flint  knife,  probably  such 
an  implement  as  was  employed  for  the  purpose  of  human 
sacrifice.  The  circumstance  appeared  of  bad  omen  to  her 
sons,  who,  scandalized  by  it,  cast  the  flint  earthwards.  It 
fell  in  the  vicinity  of  Chicomoztoc,  the  Place  of  Seven  Caves, 


1 Historia  Eccles. 


The  Jaguar-sun. 


The  Wind-sun. 


STONES  SHOWING  THE  SYMBOLS  OK  THE  “SUNS”  OR  AGES. 


0] 


1) 


The  Water-sun. 


The  Rain-sun. 

STONES  SHOWING  THE  SYMBOLS  OK  THE  “SUNS"  OR 


AGES. 


[41 


THE  MAKING  OF  MAN 


41 


and  immediately  there  sprang  from  it  an  army  of  sixteen 
hundred  gods,  who,  discontented  with  their  condition, 
dispatched  Tlotli,  the  Hawk,  as  an  ambassador  to  the  heavenly 
sphere  to  ask  as  a boon  that  the  power  of  creating  men 
might  be  conferred  upon  them,  as  it  was  not  fitting  that 
beings  of  divine  origin  should  suffer  the  miseries  of  earthly 
toil.  Their  mother,  who  also  seems  to  have  been  perplexed 
by  the  manner  of  their  birth,  replied  in  no  very  gracious 
terms.  But  in  order  to  relieve  their  wretchedness,  she 
directed  them  to  seek  the  good  offices  of  Mictlantecutli, 
Lord  of  the  Realm  of  the  Dead,  from  whom,  she  suggested, 
they  might  obtain  some  of  the  relics  of  past  generations, 
which,  if  subjected  to  the  magical  influence  of  sacrifice,  might 
provide  the  beginnings  of  a new  earth-race.  After  con- 
sultation, the  earth-gods  chose  Xolotl  1 as  their  messenger 
to  the  place  of  the  dead,  and  after  an  interview  with  its 
terrible  ruler,  he  succeeded  in  obtaining  a bone  of  super- 
human dimensions.  Fearful  of  treachery  at  the  hands  of 
Mictlantecutli,  Xolotl  turned  to  flee,  but  was  pursued  and, 
falling  in  his  flight,  broke  in  pieces  the  precious  relic  he 
carried.  These  he  hastily  gathered  up  and  succeeded  in 
quitting  the  subterranean  world  without  mishap.  Returning 
to  his  brothers,  he  placed  the  bone  in  a vessel,  and  each  of 
the  earth-gods,  drawing  blood  from  his  own  body,  dropped 
it  into  the  receptacle.  For  three  days  nothing  occurred  to 
justify  their  hopes  ; but  on  the  fourth  the  gory  mass  stirred, 
and  from  its  depths  there  emerged  a human  boy.  Satisfied 
with  the  experiment,  the  gods  repeated  it,  and  at  the  end  of 
another  four  days  a girl  arose  from  the  vessel.  Xolotl  was 
appointed  guardian  to  the  children  so  miraculously  created,1 
and  nourished  them  upon  the  milk-like  juice  of  the  maguey 
plant.  They  throve  apace,  and  in  course  of  time  became 

1 A variant  myth  makes  Quetzalcoatl  the  god  who  seeks  bones  in  the 
underworld  from  which  to  make  the  human  race.  As  ho  returns,  the  bones 
drop  to  earth  and  quails  gnaw  them.  Ciuacoatl  pounds  them  into  a paste 
from  which  men  are  formed.  The  Anales  de  Quauhtitlan  makes  the  gods 
create  man  from  the  cinders  of  the  worlds  destroyed  in  the  four  epochs. 

- Probably  because  of  his  status  as  god  of  twins  and  of  duplicates  of  all 
kinds. 


42 


COSMOGONY 


man  and  woman,  the  progenitors  of  the  entire  human  race, 
who  differ  in  bulk  and  stature  as  the  pieces  of  the  rescued 
bone  varied  in  size  and  shape.  Thus  were  born  Iztac  Mixcoatl 
the  first  man  and  Ilanceuitl  or  Ilamatecutli,  his  wife. 

CREATION  OF  THE  SUN  AND  MOON 
These  deeds  had,  however,  passed  in  a world  of  darkness, 
for  as  yet  the  sun  had  not  risen.  A council  of  the  gods  was 
assembled  at  Teotihuacan,  a locality  of  great  sanctity,  and 
seated  round  a council  fire,  it  considered  the  means  by  which 
the  luminary  might  be  created.  It  was  resolved  that  he  who 
first  cast  himself  into  the  fire  should  be  transformed  into  the 
sun.  The  offer  was  accepted  by  Nanahuatzin,  who  was 
afflicted  with  a painful  disease,  had  therefore  found  life  intoler- 
able and  did  not  dread  the  transformation.  Nothing  happened 
for  some  time  after  his  self-immolation,  and  the  waiting 
gods  began  to  make  wagers  with  one  another  regarding  the 
place  in  the  heavens  where  the  sun  would  be  likely  to  show 
itself.  None  of  them  had  considered  it  probable  that  it 
would  rise  in  the  East,  and  when  at  last  it  became  visible  in 
that  quarter,  it  was  as  a stationary  mass  which  directed  such 
scorching  rays  upon  them  that  they  dispatched  the  hawk 
messenger  to  request  it  to  depart.  Whether  or  not  Nana- 
huatzin in  his  role  of  Sun-god  was  wroth  with  his  brothers 
for  personal  reasons,  he  replied  that  it  was  his  intention  to 
destroy  them  utterly.  A great  fear  seized  upon  some,  whilst 
others  grew  angry  and  caught  up  their  weapons.  Among 
the  latter  was  Citli,  who  fitted  an  arrow  to  his  bow  and 
fired  at  the  transformed  Nanahuatzin.  The  sun-god  avoided 
the  shaft.  He  could  not,  however,  evade  all  those  which 
followed,  but  seizing  one,  cast  it  back  at  Citli,  whom  it 
transfixed  and  slew.  Fiercer  became  the  heat,  until  at  length 
the  gods  could  tolerate  it  no  longer,  and  felt  that  it  behoved 
them  to  perish  by  each  other’s  hands  rather  than  by  the 
ignoble  death  of  suffocation.  They  agreed  that  Xolotl 
should  dispatch  them  one  by  one,  cutting  open  their  breasts, 
and  this  holocaust  he  undertook,  finally  slaying  himself. 
Before  perishing,  the  gods  left  their  raiment  to  their  personal 


I 


SACRIFICE  OF  THE  GODS  43 

servants,  of  which  each  retainer  made  a bundle,  wrapping 
his  master’s  clothing  round  a stick,  placing  a small  green 
stone  inside  to  serve  as  a heart,  and  naming  it  after  the  god 
to  whom  it  had  belonged.  Olmos  himself  encountered  such 
a relic  in  Tlalmanalco,  exhibiting  evidences  of  very  con- 
siderable age.1 * * *  On  the  death  of  the  gods  the  sun  began  to 
move  in  the  heavens,  and  a god,  Tecciztecatl,  who  had 
hidden  himself  in  a cavern  when  Nanahuatzin  leaped  into 
the  fire,  now  emerged  from  his  hiding-place  and  took  the 
form  of  the  moon.  The  retainers  carried  the  bundles  from 
place  to  place,  and  one  of  them,  the  servant  of  Tezcatlipoca, 
coming  to  the  sea-shore,  had  a vision  of  his  deceased  master, 
who  commanded  him  to  betake  himself  to  the  house  of  the 
sun  and  to  bring  him  singers  and  players  of  instruments  to 
assist  in  the  celebration  of  a festival.  To  enable  the  messenger 
to  travel  to  the  Sun-House,  the  whale,  the  siren,  and  the 
tortoise  were  asked  to  form  themselves  into  a bridge  which 
might  reach  the  abode  of  the  luminary.  The  servant  crossed 
it,  singing  sweetly  as  he  went,  and  his  song  was  heard  by 
the  Sun,  who  straitly  commanded  his  retainers  not  to  respond 
to  it  on  being  approached  by  the  singer.  This  some  of 
them  failed  to  do,  and  returning  with  the  messenger,  took 
with  them  the  necessary  instruments  wherewith  to  celebrate 
the  festival  of  Tezcatlipoca. 

The  people  of  Texcuco,  says  Olmos,  naturally  placed  the 
occurrence  of  these  events  within  their  own  boundaries,  but 
they  added  (according  to  a pictorial  manuscript  which  they 
showed  the  friar)  that  the  Sun  shot  a dart  into  the  ground 
and  at  this  spot  the  first  man  arose.  He  was  imperfect, 
being  formed  only  from  the  armpits  upward.  He  was 
followed  by  a woman.  Mendieta  suppresses  the  remainder 
of  the  myth  because  of  its  Rabelaisian  details,  but  we  may 
conclude  that  from  these  twain  humanity  was  descended. 

Sahagun’s  account  of  the  creation  of  the  sun  and  moon  8 

1 Obviously  this  sacred  bundle  is  in  the  same  category  with  the  “ medicine- 

bundle  ” of  the  North  American  Indian  tribes,  and  it  would  seem  that  from 

such  a form  certain  of  the  Mexican  gods  were  evolved. 

1 Bk.  vii,  c.  2. 


44 


COSMOGONY 


differs  somewhat  from  the  foregoing  and  is  as  follows  : The 
gods  met  at  Teotihuacan,  and  asked  one  another  : “ Who 
will  undertake  the  task  of  lighting  the  world  ? ” to  which 
one  god  called  Tecciztecatl  (he  who  was  to  become  the  Moon- 
god)  replied  : “ That  will  I.”  They  cast  about  for  still 
another  member  of  the  pantheon  to  undertake  the  duty. 
At  last  they  fixed  upon  one  who  was  afflicted  with  a terrible 
disease  who  at  once  agreed  to  the  accomplishment  of  their 
desires.  During  four  days  the  gods  prepared  for  the  occasion 
by  acts  of  penitence,  then  they  kindled  a fire  on  a rock  named 
Teotexcalli  (high  place  of  the  gods).  Meanwhile  Tecciztecatl 
made  offerings  of  many  precious  things,  rich  feathers  and 
golden  ornaments.  The  spines  with  which  the  gods  cere- 
monially pricked  themselves  were  like  the  spines  of  the 
maguey,  but  were  made  from  precious  stones,  and  the  copal 
they  used  for  incense  was  of  no  common  sort.  The  victim, 
who  was  called  Nanahuatl,  offered  nine  green  reeds,  joined 
three  and  three,  instead  of  the  ordinary  branches  and  balls 
of  grass  and  spines  of  the  maguey  generally  employed  for 
such  ceremonies,  and  these  he  saturated  with  his  own  blood. 
In  place  of  copal  he  offered  up  the  scabs  of  his  sores.  The 
gods  built  a tower  for  each  of  the  two  divinities  who  had 
undertaken  the  illumination  of  the  world,  and  performed 
penance  for  four  days  and  four  nights.  They  then  strewed 
the  ground  with  the  branches,  flowers,  and  other  objects  of 
which  they  had  made  use  during  that  time.  On  the  night 
following,  shortly  before  midnight,  they  brought  Tecciztecatl 
his  ornaments.  These  consisted  of  a plumage  called  azta- 
comitl,  made  of  herons’  feathers,  and  a jacket  of  light  stuff, 
whilst  to  Nanahuatl  they  gave  a crown  of  paper  called 
amatzontli  (paper  hair)  and  a stole  and  cincture,  likewise  of 
paper.  Midnight  having  arrived,  all  the  gods  ranged  them- 
selves in  the  place  called  Teotexcalli,  where  the  fire  had  burned 
for  four  days.  They  arranged  themselves  into  two  files, 
one  on  either  side  of  the  fire,  and  Tecciztecatl  was  requested 
to  cast  himself  into  the  burning  mass.  Terrified  by  the 
intense  heat  which  he  experienced  as  he  advanced  towards 
the  flames,  the  god  recoiled  ; again  and  again  he  essayed 


SAHAGUN’S  VERSION 


45 


to  leap  into  the  fire,  but  his  courage  failed  him.  Then 
the  gods  called  upon  Nanahuatl,  who,  on  being  summoned, 
immediately  cast  himself  into  the  blazing  mass,  where  he 
at  once  began  to  crackle  “ like  meat  that  roasts.”  Teccizte- 
catl,  ashamed  of  his  former  conduct,  now  followed  him  into 
the  conflagration,  and  it  was  said  that  the  eagle  entered  the 
flames  at  the  same  time,  which  is  the  reason  assigned  for  its 
dark  plumage.  The  tiger  or  ocelot  followed,  and  was  only 
partly  burnt,  as  is  witnessed  by  its  spots.  It  is  evident 
that  this  myth  applied  in  some  manner  to  the  Aztec  military 
brotherhoods  of  quauhtli  and  ocelotl,  who  wore  the  eagle  and 
ocelot  insignia  respectively.1 

The  gods  had  already  waited  some  time  to  witness  the 
resurrection  of  Nanahuatl,  when  they  beheld  the  heavens 
commence  to  grow  red.  Terrified  at  the  sight,  they  fell  upon 
their  knees  and  could  not  comprehend  whence  the  light 
had  arisen.  The  glow  of  sunrise  illuminated  every  point  of 
the  compass,  but  many  fixed  their  gaze  upon  the  East,  feeling 
that  in  that  direction  the  luminary  would  first  be  sighted. 
Those  who  gazed  thither  were  Quetzalcoatl  (also  called 
Eecatl),  Totec,  and  Tezcatlipoca.  Others  called  Mimizcoa 
were  innumerable,  and  there  were  also  present  four  goddesses, 
Tiacapan,  Teicu,  Tlacoeua,  and  Xocoyotl.  When  the  sun 
rose  at  length  he  appeared  very  red,  and  no  one  might  look 
upon  him  without  being  blinded  by  his  rays.  The  moon 
appeared  at  the  same  time,  and  gave  forth  light  equal  to 
that  of  the  orb  of  day.  But  the  gods  thought  it  ill  that  the 
moon  should  be  as  bright  as  the  sun,  and  therefore  one  of 
them  took  a rabbit  and  cast  it  at  the  face  of  the  moon,  so 
that  it  remained  there  to  dim  its  splendour.  Although  the 
sun  and  moon  were  raised  above  the  earth,  they  remained 
stationary.  They  spoke  mockingly  to  their  erstwhile  com- 
panions. 

“ How  now,”  they  said,  “ do  you  wish  to  remain  in  mortal 
shame  ? Die  all  of  you  and  confer  life  upon  the  stars.”  The 
wind  then  offered  to  discharge  the  function  of  immolating 

1 For  further  information  regarding  this  incident  see  Boturini,  Idea, 
section  iii,  14,  “ Tiatocaocelotl.” 


46 


COSMOGONY 


the  gods  and  slew  them  one  by  one.  Only  Xolotl  refused  to 
die,  and  begged  for  life,  weeping  so  sorely  that  his  eyes 
dropped  out.  When  those  who  were  to  make  the  sacrifice 
laid  hold  of  him  he  fled  and  concealed  himself  in  a field  of 
maize,  where  he  changed  himself  into  a stalk  of  that  plant 
having  two  feet  (roots)  such  as  the  peasants  call  xolotl. 
But  having  been  recognized  among  the  maize,  he  took  flight 
a second  time  and  hid  himself  among  some  maguey  plants, 
where  he  changed  himself  into  the  double  maguey  plant 
which  is  called  mexolotl  (maguey  of  Xolotl).  On  being  dis- 
covered a third  time  he  took  flight  once  more  and  threw 
himself  into  the  water,  where  he  took  the  form  of  a fish  called 
axolotl .l  But  in  this  last  disguise  he  was  caught  and  killed. 

When  the  gods  had  been  slain  the  wind  commenced  to 
whistle  and  blow  with  violence,  so  that  at  length  the  burning 
globe  of  the  sun  began  to  drift  over  the  heavens.  But  the 
moon  still  remained  at  rest,  and  in  this  manner  they  became 
separated,  so  that  their  habit  is  to  rise  at  different  hours. 

The  Anales  de  Quauhtitlan,  after  the  manner  of  the  Book 
of  Genesis,  states  that  the  world  and  all  therein  were  created 
in  seven  days.  In  the  sign  Tochtli  the  earth  was  created, 
the  firmament  was  erected  in  Acatl,  animals  came  into 
being  in  Tecpatl,  and  man  was  made  out  of  dust  or  ashes  on 
Ehecatl,  the  seventh  day,  but  completed  and  perfected  by 
Quetzalcoatl,  who  appears  to  have  played  the  part  of  a 
demiurgos  as  regards  the  human  race.  There  can  be  little 
doubt  that  this  myth  has  been  sophisticated,  or  is  a later 
invention.  The  Anales  de  Quauhtitlan,  however,  sustains 
the  accounts  of  Olmos  and  Sahagun  regarding  the  creation 
of  the  sun  and  moon. 

Camargo,  speaking  of  the  Tlaxcaltec  cosmology,*  says  that 
the  Indians  did  not  believe  that  the  world  had  been  created, 
but  that  it  had  been  produced  by  chance.  Space,  according 

1 These  metamorphoses,  or  at  least  the  first  two,  are  obviously  founded 
upon  Xolotl’s  dual  characteristic  as  a twin.  The  resemblance  between 
his  name  and  that  of  the  little  amphibious  animal  axolotl  is  due  to  the 
monstrous  character  of  both. 

« Hist,  du  Tlaxcallan  in  Temaux-Compan’s  Nouvelles  Annales  des  Voyages 
(tom.  xeix,  p.  129). 


CONFLICTING  CREATION  MYTHS 


47 


to  their  philosophy,  has  always  existed.  Veytia 1 2 states 
that  the  Mexicans  believed  the  world  and  man  to  have  been 
created  by  Tloque  Nahuague  (Tonacatecutli).  Boturini 
credits  the  creation  to  the  same  first  cause,  and  passages  in 
Sahagun  lead  us  to  believe  that  both  Tezcatlipoca  and 
Quetzalcoatl  were  regarded  as  sub-creative  spirits,  who  were 
either  partly  or  wholly  responsible  for  the  existence  of  the 
universe.  Clavigero  expressly  states  that  the  former  was 
“ the  soul  of  the  world,  the  creator  of  heaven  and  earth  and 
lord  of  all  things.”  8 Mendieta,3  a much  older  authority, 
gives  it  as  his  opinion  that  the  making  and  moulding  of  the 
world  was  the  handiwork  of  several  gods,  but  especially 
of  Tezcatlipoca,  Uitzilopochtli,  and  an  obscure  deity,  Ocelo- 
puchtli,  who  equates  with  the  ocelot  alluded  to  in  Sahagun’ s 
account. 

Sahagun,  it  will  be  observed,  disappoints  us  in  his  account 
of  the  creation,  which  he  confines  to  the  details  of  the  appear- 
ance of  the  sun  and  moon  and  is  silent  concerning  the  crea- 
tion of  gods  and  men.  This  is  strange  when  the  facilities  he  had 
for  the  collection  of  myths  arc  considered,  but  as  a priest, 
it  is  evident  that  he  is  more  interested  in  points  of  ritual 
than  in  religious  narrative,  which,  he  evidently  agrees  with 
Curtin’s  French-Canadian,  is  to  be  regarded  as  “ chose 
d'ahsurde .”  4 Even  although  we  possess  the  sonorous  warn- 
ing of  Prescott  and  the  objections  of  others  to  bias  us  against 
Ixtlilxochitl,  there  is  little  ground  for  regarding  his  version 
of  the  Mexican  creation  story  as  being  other  than  he  received 
it  from  sources  which  would  have  been  unspeakably  precious 
had  he  made  better  use  of  them  as  regards  other  subjects. 

Regarding  Ixtlilxochitl’ s version  of  the  creation  myth, 
that  the  creator  Tloque  Nahuague,  the  maker  of  the  planets, 
brought  into  being  a man  and  a woman  from  whom  all 
human  beings  are  descended,  we  have  no  parallel  in  Mexican 
myth,  nor,  indeed,  in  American  myth,  if  we  accept  that  of 

1 Hist.  Antig.  de  Mexico , tom.  i,  p.  7. 

2 Storia  Antica  del  Messico,  tom.  ii,  p.  7. 

3 Hist.  Eccles,  p.  81. 

4 Curtin,  Creation  Myths  of  Primitive  America,  Intro.,  p.  35. 


48 


COGMOGONY 


the  creation  of  man  current  in  ancient  Peru,  and  it  is  probable 
that,  so  far  as  his  version  of  the  creation  of  humanity  is 
concerned,  Ixtlilxochitl  had  encountered  a myth  which  was 
either  of  relatively  late  origin,  or  had  arisen  out  of  the  ideas 
engendered  by  contact  with  Christianity.  This  is,  however, 
by  no  means  to  say  that  Ixtlilxochitl  himself  invented  the 
account.1 

THE  HISTORIA  DE  LOS  MEXICANOS 

The  Historia  de  los  Mexicanos  yor  sus  Pinturas  is  a manu- 
script of  such  importance  to  the  study  of  Nahua  Cosmogony 
that  a short  precis  of  its  earlier  chapters  may,  perhaps,  be 
found  of  value  in  this  place. 

“ Tonacatecutli  and  his  consort  Tonacaciuatl,  who  had 
existed  from  the  beginning,  resolved  to  undertake  the  work 
of  creation.  They  had  four  sons,  the  eldest  of  whom  was 
Tlactlauque-Tezcatlipoca,  or  Camaxtli.  He  was  born  of  a 
red  colour.  The  second  son,  Yayanque-Tezcatlipoca,  was 
greater  and  more  powerful  than  the  rest.  lie  was  born 
black.  The  third  was  Quetzalcoatl  or  Yacatecutli,  and  the 
fourth  Omitecilt,  and  for  another  name  Magueycoatl,  and  the 
Mexicans  called  him  Ochilobi  (Uitzilopochtli),  for  he  was 
left-handed  and  was  chief  god  to  those  of  Mexico,  and  their 
war-god.  Of  these  four,  Tezcatlipoca  was  the  wisest,  was 
in  all  places,  and  knew  the  hearts  and  thoughts  of  everyone. 
And  for  this  he  wTas  called  Moyocoya,  “ he  who  is  all-powerful, 
and  who  has  all  those  things  without  which  nothing  can  be.” 
Uitzilopochtli  was  born  without  flesh,  but  with  bones,*  and 
in  this  state  he  remained  for  six  hundred  years,  during  which 
time  the  gods  made  nothing. 

“ After  six  hundred  years  these  four  god-like  brothers 
were  born,  and  all  came  together  to  order  what  was  to  be 
and  the  law  that  they  should  hold.  They  made  a half- 
sun in  the  midst,  the  other  luminaries  great  and  small, 

1 Relaciones  (Chavero’s  edition ; Mexico,  1891),  p.  11.  Hist.  Chichimeca 
(Chavero’s  edition  ; Mexico,  1892),  p.  21. 

2 Among  the  American  races  the  soul  was  thought  of  as  residing  in  the 
bones.  See  Brinton,  Myths  of  the  New  World,  pp.  295  ff.,  299,  321. 


THE  GODS  OF  WATER 


49 


and  a man  and  woman  named  Oxomuco  and  Cipactonal, 
commanding  him  to  till  the  earth  and  her  to  spin  and  weave. 
From  these  were  born  the  maceguales  or  labourers.  And  to 
Cipactonal  the  gods  gave  certain  grains  of  maize  that  she 
might  keep  them  and  use  them  for  charms  and  riddles, 
and  since  that  day  women  have  used  them  for  that  purpose. 

“ The  gods  then  gave  this  pair  the  days  of  the  calendar 
and  divided  them  into  months,  twenty  days  to  each  month, 
and  three  hundred  and  sixty  days  in  the  year.  Then  they 
made  Mictlantecutli  and  Mictecaciuatl,  man  and  wife,  to 
be  the  gods  of  the  infernal  regions.  Later  they  made  the 
heavens  and  space  and  the  water,  and  then  a great  fish  like 
the  cayman,  which  is  called  cipacili,  from  which  they  shaped 
the  earth.  In  order  to  create  the  gods  of  water,  all  four 
gods  joined  together  and  made  Tlaloc  and  his  wife 
Chalchihuitlicue. 

“ These  gods  of  water  have  their  place  in  the  four  quarters, 
and  in  the  middle  of  it  was  a great  court,  where  there  were 
four  tubs  of  water.  One  water  is  very  good,  and  this  rains 
when  they  grow  grain  and  wheat.  And  these  gods  of  water 
have  many  dwarfish  servants  in  the  said  house,  and  these 
have  pitchers,  with  which  they  take  the  water  from  the  tubs, 
and  sticks  in  the  other  hand.  When  the  gods  of  water  wish 
them  to  go  to  the  boundaries,  they  take  the  pitchers  and 
sticks  and  sprinkle  the  water  as  they  are  told.  And  when 
it  thunders,  they  crack  the  pitchers  with  the  sticks,  and  when 
it  lightens  they  break  off  a portion  of  the  pitcher. 

“ All  the  aforesaid  things  had  been  made  and  created 
without  taking  any  account  of  the  years,  and  without  respect 
of  time.  The  first  man  and  woman  had  a son  called  Pilt- 
zintecutli,  who  desired  a wife  with  whom  to  live.  So  the 
gods  made  of  the  hairs  of  Xochiquetzal  a woman,  and  thus 
was  the  first  marriage  made.  This  having  been  done,  all 
the  four  gods  saw  that  the  half-sun  which  had  been  created 
gave  but  little  light.  And  they  saw  that  they  must  make 
another  half,  because  the  existing  light  was  not  able  to 
illuminate  the  world.  . . . Then  Tezcatlipoca  became  the 
sun-bearer.  And  the  gods  created  the  giants,  who  were  very 
4 


50 


COSMOGONY 


great  men  and  of  much  strength.  . . . And  they  called 
the  age  in  which  Tezcatlipoca  was  the  sun  the  sun  of  boasting 
and  of  tigers,  for  the  giants  gorged  and  ate  and  wanted  for 
nothing.  And  when  thirteen  times  fifty  and  two  years  were 
passed,  Quetzalcoatl  was  the  sun.  Then  Tezcatlipoca  took 
a great  stick  and  struck  upon  the  water,  and  turning  himself 
into  a tiger,  went  out  to  kill  the  giants.  Afterwards  he 
appeared  in  the  sky,  for  they  said  that  the  ursa  major  sank 
in  the  water,  because  it  is  Tezcatlipoca  . . . During  the 
time  Quetzalcoatl  was  the  sun  another  count  went  on,  which, 
having  ended,  Tezcatlipoca  cast  out  Quetzalcoatl,  who 
became  the  wind,  which,  when  it  blew  on  the  maceguales, 
turned  them  into  monkeys  and  apes.  And  there  was  for 
sun  Tlaloc,  which  lasted  three  hundred  and  sixty-  four  years. 
. . . During  these  years  Quetzalcoatl  rained  fire  on  the 
sun,  and  then  created  as  the  sun  his  wife  Chalchihuitlicue. 
She  was  the  sun  for  three  hundred  and  twelve  years. 

“ In  the  last  year  in  which  Chalchihuitlicue  was  the  sun, 
it  rained  so  heavily  that  all  the  maceguales  were  turned  into 
fishes.  And  when  it  had  ceased  to  destroy,  the  heavens 
fell  upon  the  earth  and  the  great  rain  began,  the  which  year 
was  tochtli.  And  the  gods  ordered  four  roads  to  be  made 
to  the  middle  of  the  earth  for  them,  and  raised  the  heavens, 
and  to  help  them  in  holding  them  up  they  created  four  men, 
called  Cotemuc,  Yzcoadt,  Yzmali,  and  Tenesuchi,  who  were 
created  by  Tezcatlipoca  and  Quetzalcoatl.  Then  they  made 
great  trees,  Tezcatlipoca  one  which  was  called  tazcaquavlt, 
which  is  to  say  “ tree  of  the  mirror,”  and  Quetzalcoatl  one 
which  was  called  quegalhuesuch,  and  with  the  help  of  the  men 
they  had  made  and  the  trees  the  gods  held  up  the  heavens 
and  the  stars  and  made  a road  in  the  sky. 

“ After  the  heavens  had  been  raised,  in  the  second  year 
after  the  flood,  which  was  acatl,  Tezcatlipoca  pronounced 
his  name,  and  there  appeared  the  dumb  Mixcoatl,  ‘ Serpent 
of  the  Clouds.’  And  they  paint  him  as  a serpent.  And 
they  drew  fire  from  fire-sticks,  which  they  called  heart  of 
the  fire.  In  the  seventh  year  after  the  flood  was  born 
Cinteotl,  the  first  son  of  the  first  man,  who  was  a god,  and 


COMMON  BASTS  OF  CREATION  MYTHS  51 


his  wife  a goddess,  and  he  was  made  of  the  hairs  of  the 
mother  goddess,  and  it  was  said  that  he  was  not  able  to  die. 
And  in  the  eighth  year  after  the  flood  the  gods  created  the 
maceguales,  like  those  that  were  before.  When  the  first 
three  years  of  this  group  of  years  had  passed,  in  the  first 
of  the  next  group  all  the  four  gods  came  together,  and  said 
that  because  the  earth  had  no  light,  and  was  dark,  and 
that  because  there  was  no  fire,  they  would  make  a sun 
which  would  give  light  to  the  earth,  and  which  would  eat 
hearts  and  drink  blood.  In  order  to  do  this  they  made  war, 
by  which  they  were  able  to  procure  hearts  and  blood.  In 
this  time  Tezcatlipoca  made  four  hundred  men  and  a hundred 
women,  and  on  these  the  sun  lived.  In  the  tenth  year, 
Suchicar,  the  first  wife  of  Piltzintecutli,  the  son  of  the  first 
man,  was  killed  in  the  war,  and  was  the  first  so  to  die.” 

If  we  search  for  a common  factor  among  these  conflicting 
ideas,  we  will,  indeed,  find  the  task  one  of  difficulty.  The 
nature  of  the  sources  from  which  we  obtain  them  does  not 
permit  us  to  arrange  them  chronologically,  and  all  that  we 
can  found  upon  in  this  respect  is  their  subject-matter,  which 
cannot  enlighten  us  much.  As  has  been  said,  we  are  probably 
on  safe  ground  if  we  accept  the  version  of  the  several  ages 
hypothetically  contained  in  the  so-called  Calendar  Stone  of 
Mexico.  The  circumstance,  too,  that  the  sun  and  moon 
myth,  as  related  by  Olmos,  agrees  for  the  most  part  with  the 
version  of  Sahagun,  permits  us  to  regard  it  as  a well-recog- 
nized belief.  Nor  can  the  variant  myth  regarding  the  crea- 
tion of  mankind,  which  is  briefly  described  in  an  annotation, 
shake  our  confidence  in  the  credibility  of  Olmos,  as  it  obvi- 
ously differs  more  in  the  names  of  the  actors  in  the  drama 
of  creation  than  in  the  circumstances,  which  are  almost 
identical.  But  if  it  is  impossible  to  verify  strictly  the  place 
of  origin  of  the  Olmos  myth,  although  Texcuco  was  claimed 
as  its  home,  it  is  permissible  to  indicate  the  universal  char- 
acter of  that  portion  of  it  which  deals  with  the  creation  of 
the  heavenly  bodies,  from  its  similarity  to  the  analogous 
passage  in  Sahagun’ s rendering,  which  proves  that  that 
part  of  it  at  least  must  have  been  more  or  less  widely 


52 


COSMOGONY 


disseminated  throughout  Mexico.  We  know  that  after  the 
collection  of  data  in  any  district  it  was  his  custom  to  submit 
them  to  experts  in  other  and  distant  parts  of  the  country 
for  comparison  and  verification.  We  may  thus  be  justified 
in  classing  the  Calendar-stone  version  of  the  world’s  ages 
and  the  Sahagun  portion  of  the  creation  myth  of  the  lumin- 
aries of  the  last  age  as  among  the  standard  beliefs  of  Mexican 
theology.  It  follows  from  Sahagun’ s general  agreement 
with  the  Olmos-Mendieta  account  that  the  portion  of  that 
version  which  he  does  not  treat  of  must  naturally  be  within 
reasonable  distance  of  exactitude.  The  circumstance  that 
both  of  these  accounts  relate  the  self-immolation  of  the  gods 
by  the  sacrificial  method  of  having  their  breasts  opened, 
seems  to  prove  that  the  myth  was  no  older  than  the  institu- 
tion of  human  sacrifice,  which  we  are  perhaps  correct  in 
regarding  as  of  no  very  great  antiquity,  although  arguments 
of  sufficient  cogency  might  be  brought  against  this  view. 

DELUGE  MYTHS 

As  Mexican  myths  of  the  creation  differ,  so  do  those 
concerning  the  great  deluge  which  at  one  period  was  sup- 
posed to  have  overwhelmed  the  earth.  As  we  have  seen, 
myths  which  are  concerned  with  the  several  ages  of  the 
earth  dwell  upon  such  an  event,  but  separate  myths  exist 
which  also  tell  of  a great  flood  which  is  almost  certainly  to 
be  identified  with  the  “ Water-sun.”  The  goddess  Chal- 
chihuitlicue  (the  goddess  of  water),  says  one  of  the  inter- 
preters of  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis,  “ saved  herself  in 
the  deluge.”  The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A. 
relates  that : “ Most  of  the  old  people  of  Mexico  say  that  a 
single  man  and  a single  woman  escaped  from  this  deluge, 
from  whom,  in  course  of  time,  mankind  multiplied.  The 
tree  in  which  they  saved  themselves  was  called  Ahuehuete 
(the  fir-tree),  and  they  say  that  this  deluge  happened  in  the 
tenth  sign,  according  to  their  computation,  which  they 
represented  by  water,  which  on  account  of  its  clearness  they 
place  in  their  calendar.  They  say  that  during  the  first  age 
men  ate  no  bread,  but  only  a certain  kind  of  wild  maize, 


A FLOOD  MYTH 


53 


which  they  called  atzitziutli.  They  name  this  first  age 
coniztal,  which  signifies  the  white  head  ; others  say  that  not 
only  did  these  two  who  were  preserved  in  the  tree  escape, 
but  that  seven  others  remained  hidden  in  a certain  cave,  and 
that  the  deluge  having  passed  away,  they  came  forth  and 
restored  the  population  of  the  earth,  dispersing  themselves 
over  it : and  that  their  descendants  in  course  of  time  wor- 
shipped them  as  gods,  each  in  his  own  nation.” 

A similar  myth  in  the  Anales  de  Quauhtitlan  or  Codex 
Chimalpopoca,  is  also  worthy  of  quotation. 

“ And  this  year  was  that  of  Ce-calli,  and  on  the  first  day 
all  was  lost.  The  mountain  itself  was  submerged  in  the 
water  and  the  water  remained  tranquil  for  fifty-two  springs. 

“ Now  toward  the  close  of  the  year,  Titlacahuan  (Tezcatli- 
poca)  had  forewarned  the  man  named  Nata  and  his  wife  Nena, 
saying  : ‘ Make  no  more  pulque,  but  straightway  hollow  out 
a large  cypress,  and  enter  it  when  in  the  month  of  Tozoztli 
the  water  shall  approach  the  sky.’  They  entered  it,  and 
when  Titlacahuan  had  closed  the  door  he  said  : ‘ Thou 

shalt  eat  but  a single  car  of  maize  and  thy  wife  but  one 
also.’ 

“ As  soon  as  they  had  finished  eating,  they  went  forth 
and  the  water  was  tranquil ; for  the  log  did  not  move  any 
more  ; and  opening  it  they  saw  many  fish. 

“ Then  they  built  a fire,  rubbing  together  pieces  of  wood, 
and  they  roasted  fish.  The  gods  Citlallinicue  and  Citlallatonac, 
looking  below,  exclaimed  : ‘ Divine  Lord,  what  means  that 
fire  below  ? Why  do  they  thus  smoke  the  heavens  ? ’ 

“ Straightway  descended  Titlacahuan  Tezcatlipoca  and 
commenced  to  scold,  saying : ‘ What  is  this  fire  doing 

here  ? ’ And  seizing  the  fishes  he  moulded  their  hinder 
parts  and  changed  their  heads,  and  they  were  at  once 
transformed  into  dogs.”  1 

THE  “ COXCOX ” FALLACY 
It  is  unnecessary  in  this  place  to  deal  at  any  length  with 
the  quite  artificial  myth  given  by  Siguenza  and  Clavigero, 

1 Anales  de  Quauhtitlan. 


54 


COSMOGONY 


based  on  a mistaken  interpretation  of  certain  Mexican 
paintings.  Briefly,  they  state  that  Coxcox,  “ the  Mexican 
Noah,”  and  his  spouse  Xochiquetzal  escaped  from  the  deluge 
in  a boat  which  grounded  on  the  peak  of  Colhuacan  : “ the 
Ararat  of  Mexico.”  Dumb  children  were  born  to  them, 
who  received  innumerable  languages  from  a polyglot  dove. 
Garcia  y Cubas  published  in  his  Atlas  Geografico  a letter 
from  Ramirez  (April  1858)  in  which  the  then  conservator 
of  the  National  Museum  of  Mexico  showed  the  fallacy  of 
Siguenza’s  interpretation  and  proved  that  the  pictures  in 
question  referred  to  the  wanderings  of  the  Aztecs  in  the 
Valley  of  Mexico. 

A flood  myth  which  has  for  its  hero  one  of  the  giants  who 
were  supposed  to  inhabit  the  earth  in  the  first  age  (or  rather 
the  first  age  according  to  the  version  which  is  supported  by 
the  Calendar-stone),  states  that  Xelhua,  the  giant  in  question, 
escaped  the  deluge  by  ascending  the  mountain  of  Tlaloc  in 
the  terrestrial  paradise,  and  afterwards  built  the  pyramid 
of  Cholula.  The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaiicanus  A says 
of  this  story : “In  this  first  age  giants  existed  in  that 
country.  . . . They  relate  of  one  of  the  seven  whom  they 
mention  as  having  escaped  from  the  deluge,  that,  the  earth 
becoming  populous,  he  went  to  Chululan  and  there  began  to 
build  a tower  which  is  that  of  which  the  brick  base  is  still 
visible.  The  name  of  that  chief  was  Xelhua  ; he  built  it 
in  order  that  should  a deluge  come  again  he  might  escape 
to  it.  Its  base  is  1,800  feet  in  circumference.  When  it 
had  already  reached  a great  height  lightning  from  heaven 
fell  and  destroyed  it.  Those  Indians  who  were  under  that 
chief  who  had  escaped  from  the  deluge,  named  Xelhua, 
made  bricks  out  of  a mountain  in  Tlalamanalco  called 
Cocotle,  and  from  Tlalamanalco  to  Chulula  Indians  were 
placed  to  pass  the  bricks  and  cement  from  hand  to 
hand  : and  thus  they  built  this  tower,  that  was  named 
Tulan  Chulula,  which  was  so  high  that  it  appeared  to  reach 
heaven.  And  being  content,  since  it  seemed  to  them  that 
they  had  a place  to  escape  from  the  deluge  if  it  should  again 
happen,  and  from  whence  they  might  ascend  into  heaven — 


A MEXICAN  BABEL 


55 


a chalcuitl,  which  is  a precious  stone,  fell  from  thence  and 
struck  it  to  the  ground.  Others  say  that  the  chalcuitl  was 
in  the  shape  of  a toad  ; and  that  whilst  destroying  the 
tower  it  reprimanded  them,  inquiring  of  them  their  reason 
for  wishing  to  ascend  into  heaven,  since  it  was  sufficient 
for  them  to  see  what  was  on  the  earth.  The  base  of  the 
tower  is  at  the  present  day  still  remaining  and  its  circumference 
is  1,800  feet.” 

This  myth  has  equivalents  in  the  Hindoo  story  of  the 
manner  in  which  Hanuman,  king  of  the  monkeys,  built  a 
bridge  from  India  to  Ceylon,  and  in  Scottish  legend,  where 
Corstorphine  Church,  near  Edinburgh,  is  the  scene  of  the 
building,  the  stones  being  passed  on  from  hand  to  hand  by 
the  “ Piets  ” from  Ravelston  Quarry,  some  considerable 
distance  away.  But  it  bears  a more  striking  resemblance 
to  the  story  of  the  tower  of  Babel,  the  work  of  another  being 
of  gigantic  origin — Nimrod.  Xelhua  was  the  mythical 
ancestor  of  the  people  of  Tehuacan,  and  Teotitlan  del  Camino. 
It  may  be  that  his  myth  has  been  sophisticated  by  the 
priestly  writers  who  set  it  down,  and  in  any  case  it  seems  to 
be  setiological  or  explanatory  of  the  Pyramid  of  Cholula. 

THE  FALL  OF  THE  GODS 

In  the  literature  of  ancient  Mexican  mythology  we  find 
persistent  vestigial  notices  of  a fall  of  the  gods,  or  rather  of 
certain  deities  from  “ heaven.”  Thus  in  the  interpretation 
of  the  Codex  T elleri  an  o- Remen  sis  we  find  a divine  locality 
called  Tamoanchan  described  as  the  “ mansion  ” from  which 
they  fell,  and  “ where  they  gathered  roses.”  The  same 
paragraph  1 relates  that  Tamoanchan  “ is  the  place  where 
these  gods  were  created  whom  they  feared  : it  signifies  the 
Terrestrial  Paradise,  and  accordingly  they  relate  that  those 
gods  being  in  that  place  transgressed  by  plucking  roses  and 
branches  from  the  trees,  and  that  on  this  account  Tonacate- 
cutli  and  his  wife,  Tonacacigua,  became  highly  incensed, 
and  cast  them  out  of  that  place,  and  that  some  of  them  came 

1 Translation  of  interpretation  in  Kings  borough,  vol.  vi,  p.  127. 


to  earth  and  others  went  to  hell.”  One  of  these,  the  divinity 
most  frequently  associated  by  the  Codices  with  this  event, 
Ixnextli,  is  spoken  of  in  the  same  work  1 as  “ Eve,  always 
weeping  and  looking  at  her  husband  Adam.  She  is  called 
Ixnextli,  which  signifies  * Eyes  blind  with  ashes,’  and  this 
refers  to  the  time  subsequent  to  her  sinning  by  plucking  the 
roses.”  In  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  (Plate  VII,  Kings- 
borough)  she  is  associated  with  a god  Ueuecoyotl  and  is 
represented  as  kneeling  on  a chair  with  head  averted.  There 
is  no  doubt  that  the  name  given  her  here,  and  which  is  supple- 
mented by  the  name  Xochiquetzal,  is  that  of  a variant  of 
the  latter,  who  is  the  goddess  of  flowers. 

In  his  interpretation  of  this  goddess  in  his  work  on  the 
Aubin-Goupil  tonalamatl  (pp.  118-119)  Seler  gives  it  as  his 
opinion  that  the  insignia  of  the  goddess  Tonacaciuatl,  consort 
of  the  creative  deity  Tonacatecutli,  is  identical  with  that 
of  Xochiquetzal,  and  proceeds  to  say  that  this  strongly 
suggests  “ that  the  home  of  the  cosmogonic  speculations 
embodied  in  the  names  of  Tonacatecutli  and  Tonacaciuatl 
was  to  be  sought  in  the  region  where  dwelt  the  goddess 
Xochiquetzal,  and  this  was  assuredly  not  Mexico  proper, 
but  appears  to  have  been  the  group  which  in  one  place  is 
comprised  by  Torquemada  under  the  name  Chalmeca,  Olmeca, 
Xicalanca,  Tcpaneca,  Xochimilca,  and  Tlalhuica.  Here  by 
Chalmeca  are  to  be  understood  the  dwellers  about  the  volcano, 
and  by  Olmeca,  Xicalanca,  the  aborigines  of  the  Tlaxcallan 
district.  . . . Originally  the  goddess  Xochiquetzal  is  perhaps 
nothing  more  than  the  deity  of  one  of  those  mountains  from 
which  the  life-giving  waters  flow  down  from  the  fields.”  It 
is  easy  to  believe  that  Xochiquetzal  is  a variant  of  Tonaca- 
ciuatl ; but  it  is  not  necessary  to  infer  therefrom  that  the 
Olmec-Tlaxcaltec  version  of  the  myth  relating  to  her  with 
its  cosmogonic  speculations  was  prior  in  origin  to  that  which 
found  acceptance  at  Mexico,  even  although  the  Olmecs  were 
regarded  as  an  older  race.  Tonacatecutli  and  his  consort 
were  believed  to  be  Toltec  deities,  and  had  thus  a greater 
antiquity' behind  them  than  Olmec  myth  could  invest  them 


56 


COSMOGONY 


» P.  120. 


THE  MEXICAN  UNIVERSE 


57 


with.  Codex  Vaticanus  A tells  much  the  same  story 
regarding  Ixnextli  and  was  probably  inspired  from  the  same 
source. 

MEXICAN  CONCEPTIONS  OF  THE  UNIVERSE 

No  definite  account  of  the  Mexican  conception  of  the 
universe  has  come  down  to  us,  but  we  are  probably  founding 
correctly  if  we  accept  the  Maya  belief  as  closely  approximating 
to  that  in  general  currency  in  Mexico.  An  examination  of 
the  central  design  in  the  Maya  Book  of  Chilan  Balam  of 
Mani,  given  in  Cogolludo’s  History  of  Yucatan  (1640),  shows 
the  earth  as  a cubical  block,  by  which  term  it  is  practically 
described  in  the  Popol  Vuh  (“  the  quadrated  castle,  four- 
pointed,  four-sided,  four- bordered  ”).  This  the  Maya  de- 
scribed as  tern  (“  the  altar”),  that  is,  the  altar  of  the  gods, 
the  offering  upon  which  was  life.  Above  this  cube  on  four 
legs  is  the  celestial  vase  (cum)  containing  the  heavenly  waters, 
rains,  and  showers,  upon  which  all  life  depends.  Above  it 
hang  the  rain-clouds  which  fill  it  and  from  it  springs  the 
vax  che,  or  Tree  of  Life,  with  outspread  branches. 

A similar  illustration  from  the  Codex  Cortesiano,1  a Maya 
MS.  which  has  been  described  as  the  “ Tableau  of  the 
Bacabs  ” or  heavenly  supporters,  shows  the  Tree  of  Life,  the 
Celestial  Vase,  and  the  cloud  masses.  Beneath  the  tree  are 
seen  the  two  creative  deities,  and  the  whole  design  is 
surrounded  by  the  twenty  day-signs. 


THE  FIVE  REGIONS  OF  THE  WORLD 

The  Mexicans  divided  the  universe  into  five  regions.  The 
locus  classicus  for  the  representatives  of  the  gods  who  preside 
over  these  regions  is  the  first  sheet  of  the  Codex  Fejirvary- 
Mayer.  The  Fire-god  occupies  the  centre  of  the  picture, 
for  just  as  fire  occupies  a space  in  the  middle  of  the  primitive 
hut,  so  does  Xiuhtecutli  maintain  the  central  position  in 
the  universal  disposition  of  things.  From  him  four  streams 

1 See  Rady  y Delgado’s  reproduction  of  this  Codex,  Madrid,  1892. 


58 


COSMOGONY 


of  sacrificial  blood  radiate  in  the  direction  of  the  four  cardinal 
points,  east,  north,  west,  south,1  which  are  situated  at  each 
corner  of  the  picture,  for  he  rules  over  all  as  well  as  over  the 
centre,  which  is  known  as  Tlalxicco.  These  bands  of  blood 
end  in  the  four  day-signs — acatl,  tecpatl,  calli,  and  tochtli, 
from  which  alone  the  years  of  the  “ calendar  ” or  tonalamatl 
could  be  named,  and  which  respectively  agree  with  the 
cardinal  points  noted  above.  The  four  sides  of  the  square 
are  also  associated  with  the  four  quarters  of  the  universe. 
Thus  the  top  square  in  the  picture  represents  Tlapcopa, 
Region  of  the  Dawn  (the  East),  the  right-hand  side  Uitznauac, 
Place  of  Thorns  (the  South),  the  bottom  Ciutlampa,  Region 
of  Women  (the  West),  and  the  left-hand  side  Mictlampa, 
Place  of  the  Dead  (the  North).  Within  these  squares  are 
seen  four  species  of  trees,  belonging  to  the  four  points  of  the 
compass.  They  resemble  the  trees  seen  in  sheet  49  of  Codex 
Borgia  and  sheet  17  of  Codex  Vaiicanus  B,  from  the  first 
of  which  codices  they  can  be  more  clearly  described. 

The  Tree  of  the  East  is  represented  as  a highly  conven- 
tionalized tree  having  two  boughs,  each  with  four  branches 
which  end  in  the  chalchihuitl  (greenstone)  symbol.  Round 
branches  are  twisted  two  ropes,  green  and  blue  in  colour, 
set  with  golden  bells.  A quetzal  bird  perches  upon  the  top 
and  the  trunk  is  decorated  with  the  symbol  for  war,  for  the 
spirits  of  the  sacrificed  warriors  were  believed  to  dwell  in 
the  eastern  heavens,  where  the  sun  rose.  The  tree  springs 
from  the  body  of  the  Earth-goddess,  and  the  ornaments 
borne  by  it  are  symbolic  of  the  rich  and  fruitful  character  of 
the  Orient. 

The  Tree  of  the  North. — This  tree  is  painted  half-green, 
half-blue,  but  is  set  with  thorns  in  every  part.  Bands  of 
blood  and  darkness  issue  from  the  body  of  the  Earth-goddess, 
in  which  it  has  its  root,  and  these  wind  around  its  boughs. 
The  eagle  stands  upon  the  top,  each  of  its  plumes  bristling 
with  a sacrificial  stone  knife. 

The  Tree  of  the  West. — This  has  a yellow  star,  and  bears 


1 The  colours  associated  with  the  points  of  the  compass  were  : East, 

yellow  ; north,  red  ; west,  blue  ; south,  white. 


North. 


South. 


THE  TREES  OF  THE  WORLD-QUARTERS. 
(Codex  Fejtrvary -Mayer,  sheet  I.) 


58  j 


West. 


THE  TREES  OF  THE  WORLD-QUARTERS. 
( Codex  Fcji n-ary -Mayer,  sheet  1.) 


[59 


REGIONAL  GODS 


59 


the  magic  bloom  at  the  end  of  each  branch.  It  is  sur- 
mounted by  the  humming-bird,  and  its  trunk  is  dotted  with 
the  stellar  eye,  in  this  case  the  evening  star. 

The  Tree  of  the  South. — This,  too,  is  thorny,  but  painted 
red,  and  the  trunk  is  sprinkled  with  symbols  recalling  that 
of  the  “ spoken  wrord  ” which  in  the  Codices  is  frequently 
seen  issuing  from  the  mouths  of  gods  and  men.  It  may 
symbolize  smoke  or  fire,  thus  alluding  to  the  fiery  nature  of 
the  region  to  which  the  tree  belongs.  A cloud  of  darkness 
and  a stream  of  blood  w'ind  around  the  stem.  It  is  sur- 
mounted by  the  arara  bird. 

These  four  trees  have  parallels  in  Maya  mythology,  as, 
for  example,  on  the  altar-pieces  of  the  cross  from  Palenque 
(Temple  II)  and  elsewhere. 

The  gods  governing  the  five  regions  of  the  universe  are  1 : 

Centre — Xiuhtecutli. 

East — Mixcoatl  and  Tlaloc. 

North — Itztli  and  Xochipilli. 

West — Iztac  Mixcoatl  and  Quetzalcoatl. 

South — Macuilxochitl  and  Xipe. 

We  find  from  an  examination  of  the  codices  that  the 
Mexicans  believed  that  the  “ world  ” or  universe  was  divided 
into  : 

Tlalxicco,  the  centre  or  “ navel  ” of  the  Earth. 

Tlapcopa,  “ the  region  of  the  Dawn  ” (the  East). 

Uitznauac,  “ Place  of  Thorns  ” (the  South). 

Ciuatlampa,  “ Region  of  Women  ” (the  West). 

Mictlampa,  “ Place  of  the  Dead  ” (the  North). 

These  several  regions  demand  a brief  description. 

Tlalxicco  was  the  dark  interior  of  the  earth,  which  was 
supposed  to  be  inhabited  by  an  animal-headed  god  or  demon, 
resembling  a badger,  to  whom  no  name  has  as  yet  been 
applied,  but  who  seems  to  possess  affinities  with  sorcery  and 
the  darker  arts.  A good  representation  of  him  is  to  be  found 
on  sheet  9 of  Codex  Vaticanus  B. 

Tlapcopa,  the  East,  or  “ Region  of  the  Dawn,”  was  regarded 

1 For  tho  further  relation  of  the  gods  to  time  and  space  see  the  appendix 
on  the  tonalamatl. 


60 


COSMOGONY 


as  a region  of  prosperity,  fertility,  and  abundant  food-supplies. 
It  was  the  house  of  the  Sun,  the  region  where  sacrificed 
warriors  dwelt  in  bliss,  and  will  be  further  described  when  we 
come  to  deal  with  the  subject  of  “ heaven  and  hell.” 

Uitznauac  or  Uitzlampa,  “ Region  of  Thorns  ” (the  South), 
was,  as  its  name  implied,  a place  of  rather  evil  omen,  for  it 
was  sometimes  thought  of  as  inhabited  by  Mictlan,  Lord  of 
the  Dead.  The  Mexicans,  dwelling  in  a plateau  country 
where  climatic  conditions  were  temperate,  probably  regarded 
the  tropics  to  the  south  as  a region  fatal  to  health,  and 
generally  insalubrious  in  character. 

Ciuatlampa,  “ Region  of  Women  ” (the  West),  was  the 
place  to  which  those  women  who  died  in  their  first  childbed 
( Ciuapipiltin  or  Ciuateteo)  went  after  death,  and  as  such 
falls  to  be  described  in  the  section  on  “ heaven  and  hell.” 
But  it  was  also  the  home  of  the  maize-plant,  and  of  the 
deities  producing  it,  and  also  of  the  Gods  of  Procreation. 
It  was  the  Region  of  the  Evening  Star,  Tlauizcalpantecutli, 
the  planet  Venus.  In  Codex  Borgia  (sheets  43-46)  we  seem 
to  see  a subdivision  of  the  Western  region  into  North,  South, 
and  West.  This  region  may  also  be  collated  with  Tamoan- 
chan,  the  paradisaical  land  of  abundant  maize,  where  the 
maize  goddess  Tlazolteotl  gave  birth  to  her  son  Centeotl. 

Mictlampa,  “ Region  of  the  Dead,”  also  falls  to  be  noticed 
in  the  section  on  “ heaven  and  hell.”  Symbolically  it  is  the 
region  of  drought. 

THE  SUPPORTERS  OF  THE  HEAVENS 

Just  as  we  gain  light  upon  the  subject  of  the  Mexican 
idea  of  the  universe  from  Maya  sources,  so  do  we  find  a 
similar  correspondence  in  the  beliefs  of  the  two  races  as 
regards  the  conception  that  the  heavens  were  supported  by 
certain  deities.  Thus  the  Maya  believed  that  the  heavens 
were  upheld  by  four  gods  called  Bacabs,  and  we  find  pictures 
in  the  Mexican  Codices  which  depict  certain  deities  upholding 
both  the  heavens  and  the  earth.  On  sheets  49-52  of  Codex 
Borgia  (upper  half)  are  seen  the  gods  of  the  four  quarters 
and  the  four  supporters  of  the  sky,  which  last  are  Tlauizcalpan- 


II] 


Til  K TREE  OF  THE  MIDDLE-QUARTER 


THE  MEXICAN  PARADISE 


61 


tecutli,  the  Sun-god,  Quetzalcoatl,  and  Mictlantecutli.  On 
sheets  19-23  of  Codex  Vaticanus  B the  four  upholders  of  the 
heavens  are  given  as  Tlauizcalpan-tecutli,  Uitzilopochtli, 
Quetzalcoatl,  and  Mictlantecutli,  and  the  four  terrestrial 
gods  as  Xipe  Totec,  Mictlantecutli,  Xochipilli,  and  Centeotl. 
The  first  four  are  shown  upholding  the  starry  firmament, 
so  that  we  are  left  in  no  doubt  as  regards  the  existence  of 
such  a conception  as  the  support  of  the  heavens  by  certain 
gods.  The  close  correspondence  between  the  personnel  of 
the  sky-bearers  in  the  two  MSS.  proves  a fairly  universal 
acceptance  of  the  belief,  especially  as  Xipe  Totec,  and  Tona- 
tiuh  the  Sun-god  have  much  in  common.1 

THE  AZTEC  HEAVENS 

According  to  ancient  Mexican  belief  various  destinations 
awaited  the  dead.  Warriors  slain  in  battle  repaired  to  the 
region  of  the  sun,  where  they  dwelt  in  bliss  with  the  deity 
who  presided  over  that  luminary.  Sacrificed  captives  also 
fared  thence.  These  followed  the  sun  in  his  daily  course, 
crying  aloud  and  beating  upon  their  shields,  and  fighting 
sham  battles.  “ It  is  also  said,”  writes  Sahagun  in  his 
History  of  the  Affairs  of  New  Spain  (Appendix  to  bk.  iii, 
eh.  3),  “ that  in  this  heaven  are  trees  and  forests  of  divers 
sorts.  The  offerings  which  the  living  of  this  world  make  to 
the  dead  duly  arrive  at  their  destination,  and  are  received 
in  this  heaven.  After  four  years  of  sojourn  in  that  place 
the  souls  of  the  dead  are  changed  into  divers  species  of  birds 
having  rich  plumage  of  the  most  brilliant  colours.”  These 
were  known  as  tzintzonme 8 (“  little  bird  which  flies  from 
place  to  place”),  and  they  flitted  from  blossom  to  blossom 
on  earth  as  well  as  in  heaven,  sucking  the  rich  fragrance 
from  the  tropical  blooms  of  the  deep  Valleys  of  Anahuac. 
This  region  is  the  Ciutlampa,  and  perhaps  the  Tamoanchan 
alluded  to  above. 

Tlalocan. — An  even  more  material  paradise  was  presided 
over  by  the  water-god  or  deity  of  moisture,  Tlaloc.  Sahagun 

1 See  myth  of  the  creation  of  the  four  supporters,  supra. 

* Humming-birds.  The  warriors  seem  to  have  been  metamorphosed  into 
the  naualli  or  bird-disguise  of  Uitzilopochtli,  the  humming-bird  god  of  war. 


62 


COSMOGONY 


calls  this  a “ terrestrial  paradise,”  “ where  they  feign  that 
there  is  surfeit  of  pleasure  and  refreshment,  void,  for  a 
space,  of  torment.”  In  that  delectable  region  there  is 
plenteousness  of  green  maize,  of  calabashes,  pepper,  tomatoes, 
haricots,  and  it  is  fulfilled  with  variegated  blossoms.  There 
dwell  the  god  Tlaloc  and  his  followers.  The  persons  who 
gain  admittance  to  this  paradise  are  those  who  have  been 
slain  by  lightning  or  thunderbolt,  the  leprous  and  the 
dropsical — those  whose  deaths  have  in  any  way  been  caused 
through  the  agency  of  water — for  Tlaloc  is  god  of  that  element. 
Existence  there  is  perpetual.  The  paradise  of  Tlaloc  was 
situated  in  the  east  in  a climate  of  eternal  summer. 

Homeyoca. — The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A 
states  that  the  abode  of  the  Creator  of  the  Universe,  Tona- 
catecutli,  was  Homeyoca  or  Homeiocan,  “ place  of  the 
Holy  Trinity.”  The  etymology  is  vague,  but  would  appear 
to  apply  to  duality  rather  than  trinity,  a suggestion  which  is 
buttressed  by  the  androgynous  character  of  the  creative 
deities.  In  an  accompanying  picture  he  points  out  the 
various  departments  of  this  heaven  as  “ the  Red  Heaven,” 
“ the  Yellow  Heaven,”  “ the  White  Heaven.”  Young 
children,  he  says,  went  to  a specific  paradise,  but  it  was 
thought  that  they  would  return  to  re-people  the  world  after 
the  third  destruction.  They  were  nourished  by  a milk- 
giving tree  round  which  they  were  seated,  getting  suck  from 
the  branches. 

But  we  have  glimpses  here  and  there  in  Aztec  literature 
of  a much  more  elaborate  series  of  heavens,  thirteen  in 
number.  The  first  contained  certain  planets,  the  second 
was  the  home  of  the  Tzitzimime,  who  included  many  of  the 
great  gods,  the  third  that  of  the  Centzon  Mimixcoa,  or  star- 
warriors,  who  were  many-coloured — yellow,  black,  white,  red, 
blue— and  provided  the  sun  with  food  in  the  shape  of  blood. 
The  fourth  was  inhabited  by  birds,  the  fifth  by  fire-snakes 
(perhaps  comets),  the  sixth  was  the  home  of  the  winds,  the 
seventh  harboured  dust,  and  in  the  eighth  dwelt  the  gods. 
The  remainder  were  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  high  primal 
and  creative  gods  Tonacatecutli  and  his  spouse  Tonacaciuatl, 


THE  MEXICAN  HELL 


G3 


whose  abode  proper  was  in  the  thirteenth  and  highest 
heaven.1 

MICTLAMPA  AS  HADES 

The  Hades  of  the  Aztec  race  was  Mictlampa,  presided  over 
by  Mictlantecutli  (Lord  of  Mictlampa)  and  his  spouse  (Micte- 
caciuatl).  The  souls  of  the  defunct  who  fared  thither  were 
those  who  died  of  disease,  chiefs,  great  personages,  or  humbler 
folk.  On  the  day  of  death  the  priest  harangued  the  deceased, 
telling  him  that  he  was  about  to  go  to  a region  “ where 
there  is  neither  light  nor  window,”  and  where  all  was  shadow, 
a veritable  land  of  gloom,  the  passage  to  which  swarmed 
with  grisly  forms  inimical  to  the  soul.  It  was  a vast,  trackless, 
and  gloomy  desert,  having  nine  divisions,  of  which  the  last, 
Chiconahuimictlan,  was  the  abode  of  the  lord  of  the  place. 
Rank  and  privilege  would  appear  to  have  been  maintained 
even  in  this  dark  realm,  although  all  offerings  to  the  dead 
must  first  be  inspected  by  Mictlantecutli  himself  ere  being 
passed  on  to  their  proper  owners.  Sahagun  states  that  four 
years  were  occupied  in  journeying  to  Mictlampa,  evidently 
an  error  for  four  days,  as  elsewhere  he  says  that  the  former 
period  was  spent  within  the  regions  of  the  dead.  The 
journey  thence  was  replete  with  terrors.  Says  the  inter- 
preter of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A : “In  this  region  of  hell 
they  supposed  that  there  existed  four  gods,  or  principal 
demons,  one  of  whom  was  superior,  whom  they  called 
Zitzimatl,  who  is  the  same  as  Miquitlamtecotl,  the  great  god 
of  hell.  Yzpuzteque,  the  lame  demon,  was  he  who  appeared 
in  the  streets  with  the  feet  of  a cock.  Nextepehua  was  the 
scatterer  of  ashes,  Contemoque  signifies  he  who  descends 
headforemost ; an  allusion  being  made  to  the  etymology 
which  learned  men  assign  to  the  name  of  the  Devil,  which 
signifies  deorsum  cadens,  which  mode  of  descent  after  souls 
they  attribute  to  him  from  this  name  and  Zon.  Yzpuzteque 
is  he  whose  abode  is  in  the  streets,  the  same  as  Satan,  he 
who  on  a sudden  appears  sideways.  It  appears  that  they 

1 Historia  de  I03  Mexicatios  por  sus  Pinturas.  I believe  these  different 
heavens  to  have  resulted  from  the  clashing  and  mingling  of  rival  cults. 


64 


COSMOGONY 


have  been  acquainted  with  the  Holy  Scriptures,  although 
clearer  arguments  in  proof  of  this  fact  are  adduced  in  the 
course  of  the  following  pages.  They  say  that  these  four 
gods  or  demons  have  goddesses.” 

These  and  other  dread  beings,  according  to  the  same  MS., 
rendered  the  hellward  journey  terrible  in  the  extreme,  and 
an  attempt  was  made  to  mitigate  the  terrors  of  the  passage 
between  the  two  worlds  by  means  of  passports  of  much  the 
same  character  as  the  spells  in  the  Egyptian  “ Book  of  the 
Dead,”  which  franked  the  soul  past  the  numerous  demons 
and  dangers  which  awaited  it.  The  first  paper  served  to 
pass  him  by  two  mountains  which  threatened  to  clash 
together  and  crush  him.  The  second  saved  him  from  the 
maw  of  a huge  snake.  Others  helped  him  to  face  the  lurking 
terrors  of  eight  deserts  and  eight  hills,  and  to  avoid  the 
grim  crocodile  Xochitonal.  A wind  of  sharp  flint  knives 
then  attacked  him.  Lastly  he  came  to  the  river  Chicona- 
huopan  (Nine  Waters),  which  he  crossed  on  the  back  of  a 
red-coloured  dog  which  accompanied  him  and  which  was 
killed  for  that  purpose  by  having  an  arrow  thrust  down  its 
throat.  It  is  not  clear  whether  this  dog  acted  as  a guide  to 
Mictlampa,  or  whether  it  preceded  the  soul,  but  it  would  seem 
that  its  master  found  it  awaiting  him  when  he  came  to  the 
banks  of  the  river,  in  the  passage  of  which  it  assisted  him. 
It  kept  its  vigil  on  the  opposite  bank,  however,  and  had  to 
swim  the  river  ere  it  could  reach  him. 

The  deceased  then  came  before  Mictlantecutli,  to  whom 
he  made  suitable  gifts — cotton,  perfumes,  and  a mantle.  He 
was  told  to  which  sphere  he  must  go.  It  is  obvious  that 
Mictlampa  was  not  so  much  a place  of  punishment  as  a place 
of  the  dead,  a Hades,  where  the  souls  of  the  good  and  evil 
were  alike  consigned.  Its  locality  is  partially  fixed,  for  it 
is  “ the  place  where  the  sun  slept,”  and,  like  the  Egyptian 
Amenti,  it  was  therefore  antipodean,  or  occupied  the  centre 
of  the  earth.  After  a four  years’  sojourn  in  this  dark 
monarchy  the  soul  was  supposed  to  come  to  a place  where, 
according  to  the  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus,  it  enjoyed 
a measure  of  rest.  • 


CHAPTER  III 
THE  GREAT  GODS 
METHOD  OF  TREATMENT 

IN  the  section  descriptive  of  the  gods,  each  divinity  is 
dealt  with  separately.  The  need  for  system  and  orderly 
arrangement  in  the  study  of  Mexican  Mythology  is 
clamant.  In  the  hope  that  future  students  of  the  subject 
may  be  spared  the  Herculean  task  of  separating  the  mythology 
of  the  Mexican  people  from  their  history,  I have  thought  it 
best  to  arrange  my  material  in  as  systematic  a fashion  as 
its  complex  character  permits. 

The  plan  employed  is  a simple  one.  I have  prefaced  the 
description  of  each  god  with  a table  containing  the  following 
information  concerning  him : Area  of  Worship,  Name, 

Minor  Names,  Relationship,  Calendar-place,  Compass-direc- 
tion, Symbol,  Festivals.  In  some  cases  where,  for  example, 
a god  has  no  festival  or  no  minor  names,  the  item  relating  to 
such  information  is,  of  course,  absent. 

The  description  proper  of  each  deity  begins  with  an  account 
of  his  Aspect  and  Insignia,  as  observed  in  the  several  codices 
and  paintings,  manuscripts,  vases,  or  statuary.1  A section 
is  devoted  to  festivals  celebrated  in  his  honour,  another  deals 
with  the  priesthood  specially  attendant  on  him,  and  a further 
paragraph  with  the  temples  in  which  he  was  worshipped. 
There  follows  a precis  of  all  known  myths  relating  to  him. 
In  certain  instances,  too,  hymns  and  prayers  offered  up  to 

1 As  it  has  been  found  impossible  to  include  every  illustration  from 
the  codices  which  is  mentioned  in  the  text,  those  pictures  not  supplied 
may  be  consulted  in  the  reproductions  of  the  codices  themselves.  A 
full  bibliography  of  the  codices  will  be  found  at  the  end.  When  the  letter 
K appears  with  reference  to  a codex,  its  reproduction  in  Kingsborough’s 
“Mexican”  antiquities  is  implied. 

5 


65 


66 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


him  are  quoted.  The  last  section  deals  with  his  nature  and 
status,  so  far  as  I have  been  able  to  elucidate  these. 

UITZILOPOCHTLI  = “ HUMMING-BIRD  WIZARD  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico. 

Minor  Names  : 

Tetzateotl — “ Terrible  God.” 

Tetzahuitl — “ The  Raging.” 

Ilhuicatl  Xoxouhqui — “ The  Blue  Heaven.” 

Mexitli — “ Hare  of  the  Maguey.” 

Compass  Directions  : The  South  ; upper  region. 

Festivals  : 

Toxcatl,  the  fifth  month  ; first  of  tlaxochimaco,  the  ninth  month. 
Panquetzaliztli,  the  fifteenth  month. 

Movable  feast  ce  tecpatl. 

Relationships  : 

Son  of  Coatlicue. 

Brother  of  the  Centzonuitznaua. 

Brother  of  Coyolxauhqui. 

One  of  the  Tzitzimime. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Face-jpaint.  — Blue  and  yellow  horizontal  stripes,  the 
yellow  known  as  piloechinolli  (“face-painting  of  children”) 
made  of  children’s  excrement,  in  allusion,  perhaps,  to  his 
character  of  a young  or  new-born  god.  He  occasionally 
wears  the  stellar  mask,1  like  Mixcoatl  and  Camaxtli. 
Body-paint. — Blue. 

Dress. — Usually  the  humming-bird  mantle,  pictographic 
of  his  name.  His  head  is  surmounted  by  a panache  of 
feathers.  On  his  breast  is  a white  ring  made  from  a mussel- 
shell,  like  those  of  Quetzalcoatl,  Tezcatlipoca,  and  Paynal, 
which  is  called  eteocuitlaanauauh  (“  his  golden  ring  ”)  or 
eltezcatl  (“his  breast  mirror”).  Perhaps  the  best  repre- 
sentation of  him  is  in  Codex  Borhonicus  (sheet  34). 

1 This  stellar  mask  is  so  called  from  being  worn  by  the  stellar  deities.  It 
is  usually  connected  with  the  red-and-white  striped  painting  of  the  body. 
The  Sahagun  Aztec  MS.  calls  it  “ face-cage  marking”  and  “ face-star  marking 
which  is  called  darkness,”  the  former  referring  to  stripes  over  the  face,  the 
latter  to  the  mask  design,  which  seems  to  me  to  symbolize  night  surrounded 
by  the  “ eyes  ” of  the  stars. 


Uitzilopochtli. 

(From  Codex  Borbonicus , sheet], 34.) 


Paynal,  “ Messenger  ” of 
Uitzilopochtli. 
(Sahagun  MS.) 


Uitzilopochtli  (after  Duran). 


UITZILOPOCHTLI. 


06 1 


COYOLXAUHQUI,  SISTER  OF  UITZILOPOCHTLI. 

(See  p.  324.) 


[67 


UITZILOPOCHTLI  DESCRIBED 


67 


Weapons. — Shield  ( teueuelli ),  made  of  reeds,  with  eagle’s 
down  adhering  to  it  in  five  places  in  the  form  of  a quincunx. 
He  carries  spears  tipped  with  tufts  of  down  instead  of  stone 
points  ( tlauacomalli ),  the  weapons  of  those  doomed  to  a 
gladiatorial  death,  the  fire-snake  xiuhcoatl  as  an  atlatl,  or 
spear-thrower,  and  the  bow,  which  he  was  supposed  to  have 
invented  or  introduced  into  Mexico.  The  flag  held  by  him 
on  some  occasions  represents  the  panquetzaliztli  festival  in 
Codices  Telleriano-Remensis  and  Vaticanus  A. 

Variations. — He  is  frequently  to  be  observed  wearing 
the  insignia  of  the  stellar  gods  of  war  and  hunting  (Mixcoatl, 
Camaxtli). 

According  to  Seler  ( Commentary  on  the  Codex  Vaticanus  B, 
p.  91),  Uitzilopochtli  figures  in  that  MS.  as  showing  “ in  a 
general  way  the  devices  and  the  dress-badges  of  the  fire-god,” 
differing,  however,  in  colour  and  painting.  When  found  along 
with  Tezcatlipoca  as  Ruler  of  the  Southern  Heaven,  in 
Codex  Fejirv dry- Mayer  (sheet  25),  he  is  seated  on  a jaguar- 
skin  seat,  enveloped  in  a long  robe  of  a light  blue  colour, 
with  balls  of  downy  feathers.  He  wears  the  aztaxelli  or 
forked  heron-feather  ornament  on  his  head  and  has  the 
yellow  face-paint  alluded  to  above.  In  the  Sahagun  MS. 
(Bib.  del  Palacio ) he  is  represented  as  wearing  on  his  back 
the  “ dragon’s  head  ” alluded  to  in  the  text.  In  the  Duran 
MS.  (2  o,  plate  2 a),  drawn  by  a European  hand,  the  humming- 
bird headdress  forms  a helmet-mask,  and  in  the  Codex 
Ramirez  (Juan  de  Tobar),  in  which  the  figure  is  Europeanized 
almost  out  of  recognition,  the  same  is  the  case,  but  the  shield- 
marking is  incorrect,  consisting  as  it  does  of  seven  tufts  of 
down  instead  of  five. 

Clavigero  (tom.  ii,  pp.  17-19)  says  of  Uitzilopochtli’ s 
insignia : “ Upon  his  head  he  carried  a beautiful  crest, 
shaped  like  the  beak  of  a bird,  upon  his  neck  a collar  shaped 
like  ten  figures  of  the  human  heart.  His  statue  was  of  an 
enormous  size,  in  the  posture  of  a man  seated  on  a blue- 
coloured  bench,  from  the  four  corners  of  which  issued  four 
snakes.  His  forehead  was  blue,  but  his  face  was  covered 
with  a golden  mask,  while  another  of  the  same  kind  covered 


68 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


the  back  of  his  head.  In  his  hand  he  carried  a large  blue, 
twisted  club,  in  his  left  a shield  in  which  appeared  five  balls 
of  feathers  disposed  in  the  form  of  a cross,  and  from  the 
upper  part  of  the  shield  rose  a golden  flag  with  four  arrows, 
which  the  Mexicans  believed  to  have  been  sent  to  them 
from  heaven.  His  body  was  girt  with  a large  golden  snake, 
and  adorned  with  lesser  figures  of  animals  made  of  gold 
and  precious  stones,  which  ornaments  and  insignia  had  each 
their  peculiar  meaning.” 

Acosta  says  of  his  appearance  : “ The  chiefest  idoll  of 
Mexico  was,  as  I have  sayde,  Vitziliputzli.  It  was  an  image 
of  wood  like  to  a man,  set  upon  a stoole  of  the  coloure  of 
azure,  in  a brankard  or  litter,  in  every  corner  wras  a piece  of 
wood  in  forme  of  a serpent’s  head.  The  stoole  signified  that 
he  was  set  in  heaven.  This  idol  had  all  the  forehead  azure, 
and  had  a band  of  azure  under  the  nose  from  one  ear  to 
another.  Upon  his  head  he  had  a rich  plume  of  feathers 
like  to  the  beak  of  a small  bird,  the  which  was  covered  on 
the  top  with  gold  burnished  very  brown.  He  had  in  his 
left  hand  a small  target,  with  the  figures  of  five  pineapples 
made  of  white  feathers  set  in  a cross.  And  from  above  issued 
forth  a crest  of  gold,  and  at  his  sides  hee  hadde  foure  dartes, 
which  (the  Mexicaines  say)  had  been  sent  from  heaven 
which  shall  be  spoken  of.  In  his  right  hand  he  had  an 
azured  staff  cutte  in  the  fashion  of  a waving  snake.  All 
those  ornaments  with  the  rest  hee  had,  carried  his  sence 
as  the  Mexicaines  doe  shew.”  1 

Solis  writes  of  his  aspect  as  follows  : “ Opposite  . . . 
sat  Huitzilopochtli,  on  a throne  supported  by  a blue  globe. 
From  this,  supposed  to  represent  the  heavens,  projected 
four  staves  with  serpents’  heads,  by  which  the  priests  carried 
the  god  when  he  vras  brought  before  the  public.  The  image 
bore  upon  its  head  a bird  of  wTought  plumes,  whose  beak 
and  crest  wrere  of  burnished  gold.  The  feathers  expressed 
horrid  cruelty,  and  were  made  still  more  ghastly  by  two  strips 
of  blue,  one  on  the  brow  and  the  other  on  the  nose.  Its 

1 Hist.  Nat.  Ind.,  pp.  352  £f.,  English  translation  in  Purchas  his  Pilgrimes, 
bk.  v,  c.  9.  Maclehoses’  edition. 


UITZILOPOCHTLI’S  FESTIVALS 


69 


right  hand  leaned,  as  on  a staff,  upon  a crooked  serpent. 
Upon  the  left  arm  was  a buckler  bearing  five  white  plums, 
arranged  in  the  form  of  a cross,  and  the  hand  grasped  four 
arrows,  venerated  as  heaven-descended.”  1 

Herrera  says  that  his  idol  was  a gigantic  image  of  stone, 
covered  with  a lawn  called  nacar,  beset  with  pearls,  precious 
stones,  and  pieces  of  gold.  It  had  for  a girdle  great  snakes  of 
gold,  and  a counterfeit  visor  with  eyes  of  glass.8 

Torquemada  writes  : “In  his  right  hand  a dart  or  long 
blue  pole,  in  the  left  a shield,  his  face  barred  with  lines  of 
blue.  His  forehead  was  decorated  with  a tuft  of  green 
feathers,  his  left  leg  was  lean  and  feathered,  and  both  thighs 
and  arms  were  barred  with  blue.”  8 

The  Sahagun  MS.  states  that  “ he  wears  a panache  of 
yellow  parrot  feathers  stuck  together,  and  having  a bunch 
of  quetzal-feathers  at  the  tip.  His  espitzalli  is  over  his  fore- 
head. The  face  or  mask  is  striped  in  various  colours,  and 
the  ear-plug  is  made  of  the  feathers  of  the  blue  cotinga. 
On  his  back  is  the  fire-snake  dress  and  on  his  arm  he  has  a 
quetzal- feather.  At  the  back  he  is  girded  with  a blue  net 
cloth,  and  his  leg  is  striped  with  blue.  Bells  and  shells 
decorate  his  feet,  and  he  is  shod  with  sandals  of  the  type 
usually  worn  by  persons  of  high  degree.  His  shield  is  the 
teueuelli  with  a bundle  of  arrows  without  points  stuck  in 
it,  and  in  one  hand  he  holds  a serpent-staff.” 

Sahagun  (c.  xxii,  bk.  iv)  describes  the  insignia  employed 
at  the  god’s  festival  of  ce  tecpatl.  These  were  the  quetzal- 
quemitl , or  mantle  of  green  quetzal- feathers,  the  tozquemitl, 
the  mantle  made  of  the  yellow  feathers  of  the  toztli,  a bird  of 
the  parrot  species,  the  Uitzitzilquemitl,  or  mantle  of  humming- 
bird’s feathers,  “ and  others  less  rich.” 

FESTIVALS 

The  first  festival  of  Uitzilopochtli  was  the  tlaxochimaco, 
of  which  Sahagun  says  : “ The  ninth  month  was  styled 
1 Hist.  Conq.  Mex.,  tom.  i,  pp.  3D6-398. 

3 Gage’s  trans.  of  Herrera,  in  New  Survey,  pp.  116-117  ; for  Spanish  text, 
see  Hist.  Gen.,  tom.  i,  dec.  ii,  bk.  vii,  c.  xvii. 

3 Monarq.  Ind.,  tom  i,  p.  293. 


70 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


tlaxochimaco.  A festival  was  held  on  the  first  day  of  this 
month  in  honour  of  Huitzilopochtli,  god  of  war,  when  he 
was  offered  the  first  flowers  of  the  year.  The  night  before 
this  festival  everybody  killed  chickens  and  dogs  with  which 
to  make  tamalli  and  other  things  good  to  eat.  Very  soon 
after  the  first  glimmerings  of  dawn  on  the  day  of  the  festival, 
the  attendants  of  the  idols  adorned  the  statue  of  Huitzilo- 
pochtli with  flowers.  The  images  of  the  other  gods  were 
decked  with  garlands  and  wreaths  of  flowers,  and  the  same 
was  done  to  all  the  other  idols  of  the  calpulli  1 and  telpoch- 
calli .'  The  calpixque ,s  the  principal  people,  and  the  mace- 
hualli  4 covered  the  statues  in  their  houses  with  flowers. 
These  preparations  being  completed,  the  viands  prepared 
during  the  previous  night  were  partaken  of,  and  shortly 
after  this  repast  a dance  was  engaged  in,  in  which  the  nobles 
mingled  with  the  women,  taking  them  by  the  hand,  and  even 
going  the  length  of  embracing  them  by  placing  their  arms 
round  their  necks.  The  usual  movements  of  the  areyto 1 
were  not  performed,  the  dancers  moving  step  by  step,  to  the 
strains  of  the  musicians  and  singers,  who  stood,  some  distance 
away,  at  the  foot  of  a round  altar  called  momoztli.  They 
sang  thus  until  night,  not  only  in  the  courts  of  the  temples, 
but  also  in  the  houses  of  people  of  rank  and  of  the  mace- 
hualli,  while  the  aged  of  both  sexes  indulged  deeply  in 
pulque  ; but  young  people  were  not  permitted  to  touch  it, 
and  anyone  allowing  them  to  drink  it  was  severely  punished.” 
Toxcatl. — For  this  festival  see  under  Tezcatlipoca,  to 
whom  it  was  also  and  more  especially  sacred. 

Panquetzalitztli. — The  following  account  of  this  festival 
is  summarized  from  Sahagun’s  pages  : For  twenty-four  days 
prior  to  the  incidence  of  the  festival  the  priests  did  penitence. 
They  hung  branches  upon  the  oratories  and  shrines  of  the 
gods  of  the  mountains,  and  green  reeds  and  leaves  of  the 
maguey-plant.  At  the  end  of  the  quecholli  festival  every- 

1 Quarter,  district. 

2 House  of  the  youths,  where  the  acolytes  or  junior  priests  resided. 

3 Governors. 

4 Vassals,  burghers. 

6 Dance. 


PANQUETZALITZTLI  FESTIVAL 


71 


one  took  to  dancing  and  singing,  especially  to  the  song  or 
hymn  of  Uitzilopochtli.  Nine  days  before  the  sacrifice 
those  doomed  to  die  bathed  in  the  fountain  called  Uitzilotl 
(humming-bird  water)  in  the  village  of  Uitzilopochco.  The 
old  men  went  to  seek  nine  bunches  of  the  leaves  of  the  tree 
called  aueuetl  (“  old  one  of  the  waters  ” — the  Cupressus 
distica).  The  faces  of  the  doomed  ones  were  painted  in  the 
colours  of  the  god,  yellow  and  blue  in  transverse  bands,  and 
adorned  with  his  insignia. 

After  five  days  of  penitential  exercises  mingled  with 
dancing  and  singing,  and  on  the  day  before  the  festival,  the 
captives  rose  with  dawn  and  betook  themselves  to  the  houses 
of  those  who  had  dedicated  them  to  the  slaughter,  preceded 
by  a man  carrying  a vessel  full  of  black  ink  or  red  ochre  or 
blue  tincture.  On  arriving  at  the  houses  of  those  who 
had  devoted  them  to  death,  they  dipped  their  hands  in  the 
vessel  and  pressed  them  on  the  gates  and  the  pillars  of  the 
dwelling,  so  that  the  imprint  remained.1  They  then  entered 
the  kitchen  of  the  house  and  walked  several  times  round 
the  furnace.  Then  they  marched  in  procession  to  the  temple, 
accompanied  by  porters  bearing  rich  attire,  which  the 
captives  donned.  The  hair  was  then  taken  from  their  heads 
to  be  kept  “ as  a relic.”  They  were  then  given  cylindrical 
cakes  to  eat,  which  must  be  held  on  the  point  of  a maguey 
thorn  and  not  between  the  fingers.  With  the  dawn  of  day 
the  god  Paynal,  the  herald  of  Uitzilopochtli,  descended  from 
the  temple  of  Uitzilopochtli.  Four  captives  were  then  slain, 
two  in  honour  of  “ the  god  Oappatzan.”  Paynal,  borne  by 
four  “ necromancers,”  then  took  the  road  to  Tlatelolco, 
whence  he  passed  to  Nonoalco,  the  priest  of  the  temple 
there  receiving  him  with  the  representative  of  the  god 
Quauitlicac,  “ his  companion  ” (see  “ Myths  ”).  The  images 
were  then  carried  to  Tlaxotlan  and  Popotlan,  where  other 
captives  were  slain.  Then  the  procession  took  its  way 
to  Chapultepec,  passing  the  hill  of  that  name  and  crossing 

1 This  custom  was  in  vogue  among  certain  prehistoric  races,  and  is  still 
practised  on  the  death  of  a relative  by  African  bushmen,  who  first  remove  a 
finger-joint. 


72  THE  GREAT  GODS 

the  little  river  Izquitlan,  at  the  temple  of  which  other 
captives  called  Izquiteca  (“who  eat  roasted  maize”)  were 
sacrificed.  They  then  crossed  to  the  right  under  Coyoacan, 
passing  by  way  of  Tepetocan  to  Acachinanco. 

During  the  time  they  made  this  progress  the  slaves  who 
were  about  to  die  engaged  in  a skirmish.  They  divided 
themselves  into  two  parties,  the  Uitznauatl  (“  They  of  the 
Thorny  Wizard”),  the  other  unnamed.  The  former  seem 
to  have  been  professional  soldiers  armed  with  mock  weapons  ; 
the  others  slaves,  armed  with  maquahuitls,  wooden  swords 
set  with  obsidian  flakes.  On  PaynaPs  return  those  who 
watched  them  from  the  summit  of  the  temple,  seeing  the 
banner  of  the  god  ( epaniztli ),  cried  out,  “ Mexicans,  cease 
your  strife,  the  lord  Paynal  has  come.”  The  warriors  in 
the  patrol  of  Paynal  then  rushed  to  the  summit  of  the  temple, 
where  they  arrived  in  a breathless  condition.  They  placed 
their  idol  beside  the  paste  image  of  Uitzilopochtli.  Their 
ears  were  pierced  by  the  priest.  They  descended  again, 
carrying  an  image  of  Uitzilopochtli  made  of  paste,  which  they 
divided,  each  bearing  his  own  portion  to  his  own  house, 
where  he  made  festival  with  his  parents  and  neighbours. 
A tour  of  the  temple  was  then  made,  the  captives  walking 
in  front. 

A priest  then  descended  from  the  summit  of  the  temple 
bearing  a sheaf  of  white  papers  in  his  hand,  which  he  held 
up  to  the  four  cardinal  points  in  turn,  afterwards  throwing 
them  into  a mortar  called  quauhxicalco  1 (“  cup  of  the 
eagles”).  He  was  followed  by  another  holding  a very  long 
pine-torch  called  xiuhcoatl  (“fire-snake”),  shaped  like  fire. 
(This  was  the  fire-snake  weapon  with  which  one  of  Uitzilo- 
pochtli’s  followers  had  killed  his  rebellious  sister  Coyol- 
xauhqui).  This  was  cast  burning  into  the  vessel  containing 
the  papers,  which  were  consumed.  Paynal  reappeared,  and 
the  slaves  were  sacrified  according  to  rank  to  the  sound  of 
conch-shells.  All  then  returned  home,  where  octli  of  special 
strength  was  drunk,  festivities  engaged  in,  and  presents  of 

1 More  correctly  quauhxicalli,  a stone  vase  for  the  reception  of  the  hearts 
of  victims,  from  quauh  ( tli ) “ eagle,”  and  xicalli,  “ cup.” 


MYTHS  OF  UITZILOPOCHTLI  73 

wearing  apparel  distributed  to  friends  and  dependants 
(bk.  ii,  c.  34). 

This  festival  took  place  at  the  period  of  the  winter  solstice, 
when  the  sun  has  removed  farthest  to  the  south.  The 
burning  of  the  papers  by  the  xiuhcoatl,  and  the  fact  that  the 
fire-festival  of  the  new  period  of  fifty-two  years,  the  making 
of  the  new  fire,  was  usually  postponed  to  coincide  with  it, 
show  it  to  be  a fire-feast ; for  in  his  “ avatar  ” of  the  sun 
Uitzilopochtli  was  a fire-god. 

Torquemada  states  that  the  priest  of  Quetzalcoatl  hurled 
a dart  into  the  breast  of  the  paste  image  of  Uitzilopochtli, 
which  fell.  lie  then  pulled  the  “ heart  ” out  of  it,  giving  it 
to  the  king.  The  body  was  then  divided  among  the  men, 
no  woman  being  allowed  to  eat  of  it.  The  ceremony  was 
called  teoqualo,  i.e.  “ god  is  eaten.”  1 

MYTHS 

Regarding  Uitzilopochtli,  Clavigero  says : “ Huitzilo- 

pochtli,  or  Mexitli,  was  the  god  of  war  ; the  deity  the  most 
honoured  by  the  Mexicans,  and  their  chief  protector.  Of 
this  god  some  said  he  was  a pure  spirit,  others  that  he  was 
born  of  a woman,  but  without  the  assistance  of  a man,  and 
described  his  birth  in  the  following  manner  : There  lived, 
said  they,  in  Coatepec,  a place  near  to  the  ancient  city  of 
Tula,  a woman  called  Coatlicue,  mother  of  the  Centzon- 
huiznahuas,  who  was  extremely  devoted  to  the  worship  of 
the  gods.  One  day,  as  she  was  employed,  according  to  her 
usual  custom,  in  walking  in  the  temple,  she  beheld  descend- 
ing in  the  air  a ball  made  of  various  feathers.  She  seized 
it  and  kept  it  in  her  bosom,  intending  afterwards  to  employ 
the  feathers  in  decoration  of  the  altar  ; but  when  she  wanted 
it  after  her  walk  was  at  an  end  she  could  not  find  it,  at 
which  she  was  extremely  surprised,  and  her  wonder  was 
very  greatly  increased  when  she  began  to  perceive  from  that 
moment  that  she  was  pregnant.  Her  pregnancy  advanced 
till  it  was  discovered  by  her  children,  who,  although  they  could 
not  themselves  suspect  their  mother’s  virtue,  yet  fearing 
1 Monarq.  Ind.,  tom.  ii,  p.  73. 


74 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


the  disgrace  she  would  suffer  upon  her  delivery,  determined 
to  prevent  it  by  putting  her  to  death.  They  could  not  take 
their  resolution  so  secretly  as  to  conceal  it  from  their  mother, 
who,  while  she  was  in  deep  affliction  at  the  thought  of  dying 
by  the  hands  of  her  own  children,  heard  an  unexpected  voice 
issue  from  her  womb,  saying,  ‘ Be  not  afraid,  mother,  I shall 
save  you  with  the  greatest  honour  to  yourself  and  glory 
to  me.’ 

“ Her  hard-hearted  sons,  guided  and  encouraged  by  their 
sister  Cojolxauhqui,  who  had  been  the  most  keenly  bent 
upon  the  deed,  were  now  just  upon  the  point  of  executing 
their  purpose,  when  Huitzilopochtli  was  born,  with  a shield 
in  his  left  hand,  a spear  in  his  right,  and  a crest  of  green 
feathers  on  his  head  ; his  left  leg  adorned  with  feathers, 
and  his  face,  arms,  and  thighs  streaked  with  blue  lines. 
As  soon  as  he  came  into  the  world  he  displayed  a twisted 
pine,  and  commanded  one  of  his  soldiers,  called  Tochchan- 
calqui,  to  fell  with  it  Cojolxauhqui,  as  the  one  who  had 
been  the  most  guilty  ; and  he  himself  attacked  the  rest  with 
so  much  fury  that,  in  spite  of  their  efforts,  their  arms,  or 
their  entreaties,  he  killed  them  all,  plundered  their  houses, 
and  presented  the  spoils  to  his  mother.  Mankind  were  so 
terrified  by  this  event,  that  from  that  time  they  called  him 
Tetzahuitl  (terror)  and  Tetzauhteotl  (terrible  god). 

“ This  was  the  god  who,  as  they  said,  becoming  the  pro- 
tector of  the  Mexicans,  conducted  them  for  so  many  years 
in  their  pilgrimage,  and  at  length  settled  them  where  they 
afterwards  founded  the  great  city  of  Mexico.  They  raised 
to  him  that  superb  temple,  so  much  celebrated,  even  by 
the  Spaniards,  in  which  were  annually  holden  three  solemn 
festivals  in  the  fifth,  ninth,  and  fifteenth  months  ; besides 
those  kept  every  four  years,  every  thirteen  years,  and  at  the 
beginning  of  every  century.  His  statue  was  of  gigantic 
size,  in  the  posture  of  a man  seated  on  a blue-coloured 
bench,  from  the  four  corners  of  which  issued  four  huge  snakes. 
His  forehead  was  blue,  but  his  face  was  covered  with  a 
golden  mask,  while  another  of  the  same  kind  covered  the 
back  of  his  head.  Upon  his  head  he  carried  a beautiful 


DEIFICATION  OF  UITZILOPOCHTLI 


75 


crest,  shaped  like  the  beak  of  a bird  ; upon  his  neck  a collar 
consisting  of  ten  figures  of  the  human  heart ; in  his  right 
hand  a large  blue,  twisted  club  ; in  his  left  a shield,  on 
which  appeared  five  balls  of  feathers  disposed  in  the  form 
of  a cross,  and  from  the  upper  part  of  the  shield  rose  a 
golden  flag  with  four  arrows,  which  the  Mexicans  pretended 
to  have  been  sent  to  them  from  heaven  to  perform  those 
glorious  actions  which  we  have  seen  in  their  history.  His 
body  was  girt  with  a large  golden  snake  and  adorned  with 
lesser  figures  of  animals  made  of  gold  and  precious  stones, 
which  ornaments  and  insignia  had  each  their  peculiar  mean- 
ing. They  never  deliberated  upon  making  war  without 
imploring  the  protection  of  this  god,  with  prayers  and 
sacrifices ; and  offered  up  a greater  number  of  human 
victims  to  him  than  to  any  other  of  the  gods.”  1 

Boturini  says  of  this  god  : “ While  the  Mexicans  were 
pushing  their  conquests  and  their  advance  toward  the 
country  now  occupied  by  them,  they  had  a very  renowned 
captain,  or  leader,  called  Huitziton.  He  it  was  that  in  these 
long  and  perilous  journeys  through  unknown  lands,  sparing 
himself  no  fatigue,  took  care  of  the  Mexicans.  The  fable 
says  of  him  that,  being  full  of  years  and  wisdom,  he  was  one 
night  caught  up  in  sight  of  his  army  and  of  all  his  people, 
and  presented  to  the  god  Tezauhteotl,  that  is  to  say  the 
Frightful  God,  who,  being  in  the  shape  of  a horrible  dragon, 
commanded  him  to  be  seated  at  his  right  hand,  saying  : 
‘ Welcome,  O valiant  captain  ; very  grateful  am  I for  thy 
fidelity  in  my  service  and  in  governing  my  people.  It  is 
time  that  thou  shouldest  rest,  since  thou  art  already  old, 
and  since  thy  great  deeds  raise  thee  up  to  the  fellowship  of 
the  immortal  gods.  Return  then  to  thy  sons  and  tell  them 
not  to  be  afflicted  if  in  future  they  cannot  see  thee  as  a mortal 
man ; for  from  the  nine  heavens  thou  shalt  look  down 
propitious  upon  them.  And  not  only  that,  but  also,  when 
I strip  the  vestments  of  humanity  from  thee,  I will  leave  to 
thine  afflicted  and  orphan  people  thy  bones  and  thy  skull 
so  that  they  may  be  comforted  in  their  sorrow,  and  may 
1 Hist.  Mex.,  English  translation  by  C.  Cullen  (London,  1787),  vol.  i,  bk.  vi. 


76 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


consult  thy  relics  as  to  the  road  they  have  to  follow  : and 
in  due  time  the  land  shall  be  shown  them  that  I have  destined 
for  them,  a land  in  which  they  shall  hold  wide  empire,  being 
respected  of  the  other  nations.’ 

“ Huitziton  did  according  to  these  instructions,  and  after 
a sorrowful  interview  with  his  people,  disappeared,  carried 
away  by  the  gods.  The  weeping  Mexicans  remained  with 
the  skull  and  bones  of  their  beloved  captain,  which  they 
carried  with  them  till  they  arrived  in  New  Spain,  and  at 
the  place  where  they  built  the  great  city  of  Tenochtitlan,  or 
Mexico.  All  this  time  the  devil  spoke  to  them  through  this 
skull  of  Huitziton,  often  asking  for  the  immolation  of  men 
and  women,  from  which  thing  originated  those  bloody 
sacrifices,  practised  afterwards  by  this  nation  with  so  much 
cruelty  on  prisoners  of  war.  This  deity  was  called,  in  early 
as  well  as  in  later  times,  Iluitzilopochtli — for  the  principal 
men  believed  that  he  was  seated  at  the  left  hand  of  Tezcat- 
lipoca — a name  derived  from  the  original  name  Huitziton, 
and  from  the  word  mapoche,  ‘ left  hand.’  ” 1 

Sahagun  says  of  Uitzilopochtli  that,  being  originally  a 
man,  he  was  a sort  of  Hercules,  of  great  strength  and  warlike, 
a great  destroyer  of  towns  and  slayer  of  men.  In  war  he  had 
been  a living  fire,  very  terrible  to  his  adversaries  ; and  the 
device  he  bore  was  a dragon’s  head,  frightful  in  the  extreme, 
and  casting  fire  out  of  its  mouth.  A great  wizard  he  had 
been,  and  sorcerer,  transforming  himself  into  the  shape  of 
divers  birds  and  beasts.  While  he  lived,  the  Mexicans 
esteemed  this  man  very  highly  for  his  strength  and  dexterity 
in  war,  and  when  he  died  they  honoured  him  as  a god,  offer- 
ing slaves,  and  sacrificing  them  in  his  presence.  And  they 
looked  to  it  that  those  slaves  were  well  fed  and  well  decorated 
with  such  ornaments  as  were  in  use,  with  earrings  and 
visors  ; all  for  the  greater  honour  of  the  god.  In  Tlaxcala 
also  they  had  a deity  called  Camaxtli,  who  was  similar  to  this 
Huitzilopochtli.8 

The  myth  of  Uitzilopochtli,  as  given  by  Sahagun,  may  be 
condensed  as  follows  : 

1 Idea  de  una  Hist.,  pp.  60-61.  * Bk.  i,  c.  i. 


BIRTH  OF  UITZILOPOCHTLI 


77 


Under  the  shadow  of  the  mountain  of  Coatepec,  near  the 
Toltec  city  of  Tollan,  there  dwelt  a pious  widow  called 
Coatlicue,  the  mother  of  a tribe  of  Indians  called  Cent- 
zonuitznaua,  who  had  a daughter  called  Coyolxauhqui,  and 
who  daily  repaired  to  a small  hill  with  the  intention  of 
offering  up  prayers  to  the  gods  in  a penitent  spirit  of  piety. 
Whilst  occupied  in  her  devotions  one  day  she  was  surprised 
by  a small  ball  of  brilliantly  coloured  feathers  falling  upon 
her  from  on  high.  She  was  pleased  by  the  bright  variety 
of  its  hues  and  placed  it  in  her  bosom,  intending  to  offer  it 
up  to  the  Sun-god.  Some  time  afterwards  she  learnt  that 
she  was  to  become  the  mother  of  another  child.  Her  sons, 
hearing  of  this,  rained  abuse  upon  her,  being  incited  to 
humiliate  her  in  every  possible  way  by  their  sister 
Coyolxauhqui. 

Coatlicue  went  about  in  fear  and  anxiety  ; but  the  spirit 
of  her  unborn  infant  came  and  spoke  to  her  and  gave  her 
words  of  encouragement,  soothing  her  troubled  heart.  Her 
sons,  however,  were  resolved  to  wipe  out  what  they  considered 
an  insult  to  their  race  by  the  death  of  their  mother,  and  took 
counsel  with  one  another  to  slay  her.  They  attired  them- 
selves in  their  war-gear,  and  arranged  their  hair  after  the 
manner  of  warriors  going  to  battle.  But  one  of  their  number, 
Quauitlicac,  relented  and  confessed  the  perfidy  of  his  brothers 
to  the  still  unborn  Uitzilopochtli,  who  replied  to  him : 
“ O uncle,1  hearken  attentively  to  what  1 have  to  say  to  you. 
I am  fully  informed  of  what  is  going  to  happen.”  With  the 
intention  of  slaying  their  mother,  the  Indians  went  in  search 
of  her.  At  their  head  marched  their  sister,  Coyolxauhqui. 
They  were  armed  to  the  teeth,  and  carried  bundles  of  darts, 
with  which  they  intended  to  kill  the  luckless  Coatlicue. 

Quauitlicac  climbed  the  mountain  to  acquaint  Uitzilo- 
pochtli with  the  news  that  his  brothers  were  approaching  to 
kill  their  mother. 

“ Mark  well  where  they  are  at,”  replied  the  infant  god. 
“ To  what  place  have  they  advanced  ? ” 

1 So  Uitzilopochtli  addresses  his  half-brother.  “ Uncle  ” among  the  ancient 
Mexicans  was  an  honorific  title. 


78 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


“ To  Tzompantitlan,”  responded  Quauitlicac. 

Later  on  Uitzilopochtli  asked : “ Where  may  they  be 
now  ? ” 

“ At  Coaxalco,”  was  the  reply. 

Once  more  Uitzilopochtli  asked  to  what  point  his  enemies 
had  advanced. 

“ They  are  now  at  Petlac,”  Quauitlicac  replied. 

Quauitlicac  later  informed  them  that  his  brothers  and 
sister  had  arrived  at  the  middle  of  the  mountain.  At  the 
moment  they  arrived  Uitzilopochtli  was  born,  attired  in 
full  war  panoply.  He  ordered  one  named  Tochancalqui 
(inhabitant  of  our  house)  to  attack  his  sister  with  the  fire- 
snake  xiuhcoatl,  and  with  a blow  he  shattered  Coyolxauhqui 
in  pieces.  Her  head  rested  upon  the  mountain  of  Coatepec. 
The  infant  god  then  pursued  his  brethren  four  times  round 
the  mountain.  Several  fell  into  the  lake  and  were  drowned. 
Others  he  slew,  only  a few  escaped,  and  these  were  banished 
to  Uitzlampa  in  the  south.1 

Torquemada  says  of  Uitzilopochtli : “ Huitzilopochtli,  the 
ancient  god  and  guide  of  the  Mexicans,  is  a name  variously 
derived.  Some  say  it  is  composed  of  two  words  : huitzilin, 
‘ a humming-bird,’  and  tlahuipuchtli,  ‘ a sorcerer  that  spits 
fire.’  Others  say  that  the  second  part  of  the  name  comes 
not  from  tlahuipuchtli,  but  from  opuchtli,  that  is,  ‘ the  left 
hand  ’ ; so  that  the  whole  name,  Huitzilopochtli,  would 
mean  ‘ the  shining-feathered  left  hand.’  For  this  idol  was 
decorated  with  rich  and  resplendent  feathers  on  the  left 
arm.  And  this  god  it  was  that  led  out  the  Mexicans  from 
their  own  land  and  brought  them  into  Anahuac. 

“ Some  held  him  to  be  a purely  spiritual  being,  others 
affirmed  that  he  had  been  born  of  a woman,  and  related  his 
history  after  the  following  fashion  : Near  the  city  of  Tulla 
there  is  a mountain  called  Coatepec,  that  is  to  say  the  Moun- 
tain of  the  Snake,  where  a woman  lived,  named  Coatlicue  or 
Snake-petticoat.  She  was  the  mother  of  many  sons  called 
Centzunhuitznahua,  and  of  a daughter  whose  name  was 
Coyolxauhqui.  Coatlicue  was  very  devout  and  careful  in 

1 Bk.  iii,  c,  i,  par.  i. 


TORQUEMADA’S  VERSION 


79 


the  service  of  the  gods,  and  she  occupied  herself  ordinarily 
in  sweeping  and  cleaning  the  sacred  places  of  that  mountain. 
It  happened  that  one  day,  occupied  with  these  duties,  she 
saw  a little  ball  of  feathers  floating  down  to  her  through 
the  air,  which  she  taking,  as  we  have  already  related,  found 
herself  in  a short  time  pregnant. 

“ Upon  this  all  her  children  conspired  against  her  to  slay 
her,  and  came  armed  against  her,  the  daughter  Coyolxauhqui 
being  the  ringleader  and  most  violent  of  all.  Then,  immedi- 
ately, Huitzilopochtli  was  born,  fully  armed,  having  a shield 
called  teuehueli  in  his  left  hand,  in  his  right  a dart,  or  long 
blue  pole,  and  all  his  face  barred  over  with  lines  of  the  same 
colour.  His  forehead  was  decorated  with  a great  tuft  of 
green  feathers,  his  left  leg  was  lean  and  feathered,  and  both 
thighs  and  the  arms  barred  with  blue.  He  then  caused  to 
appear  a serpent  made  of  torches,  teas,  called  xiuhcoatl ; 
and  he  ordered  a soldier  called  Tochaucalqui  to  light  this 
serpent,  and  taking  it  with  him  to  embrace  Coyolxauhqui. 
From  this  embrace  the  matricidal  daughter  immediately 
died,  and  Huitzilopochtli  himself  slew  all  her  brethren  and 
took  their  spoil,  enriching  his  mother  therewith.  After  this 
he  was  surnamed  Tetzahuitl,  that  is  to  say  Fright,  or  Amaze- 
ment, and  held  as  a god,  born  of  a mother  without  a father — 
as  the  great  god  of  battles,  for  in  these  his  worshippers  found 
him  very  favourable  to  them.”  1 

“ Ilisloria  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas — Col- 
lecting and  summarizing  the  scattered  notices  regarding 
Uitzilopochtli  in  the  above-named  work,  we  find  it  stated 
that  he  was  the  fourth  and  youngest  son  of  Tonacatecutli 
and  Tonacaciuatl,  his  elder  brothers  being  the  Red  Tezcat- 
lipoca,  the  Black  Tezcatlipoca,  and  Quetzalcoatl.  Uitzilo- 
pochtli is  here  also  called  Omitecatl,  “ and  for  another  name 
Magueycoatl  (Snake  of  the  Maguey).  He  was  called  Ochilo- 
bos  (the  Spanish  rendering  of  Uitzilopochtli)  because  he  was 
left-handed  and  was  chief  god  to  those  of  Mexico  and  their 
god  of  war.  He  was  born  without  flesh  but  with  bones, 
and  thus  he  remained  six  hundred  years,  in  which  nothing 
1 Monarq.  Ind.,  tom.  i,  p.  294.  2 See  chapter  on  Cosmogony. 


80 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


was  made,  ‘ neither  the  gods  nor  their  father.’  Taking 
counsel  with  Quetzalcoatl,  they  fashioned  the  sun,  then  they 
made  a man,  Oxomoco,  and  a woman,  Cipactonal,  com- 
manding him  to  till  the  earth  and  her  to  spin  and  weave, 
and  created  other  things.” 

HYMNS 

In  the  Sahagun  MS.  the  following  hymns  or  songs  relate  to 
Uitzilopochtli : — 

THE  SONG  OF  UITZILOPOCHTLI 

i 

Uitzilopochtli  the  warrior,  no  one  is  my  equal ; 

Not  in  vain  have  I put  on  the  vestment  of  yellow  feathers. 

For  through  me  the  sun  has  risen  (i.e.  the  time  of  sacrifice  appears). 

ii 

The  man  out  of  the  cold  land  knew  (through  him)  a baneful  omen. 

He  had  taken  a foot  from  the  man  out  of  the  cold  land. 

in 

In  the  place  of  Tlaxotlan,  the  feathers  were  distributed 
With  which  the  war  chieftains  stuck  themselves. 

My  God  is  named  Tepanquizqui  (“  He  who  overcomes  the  people  ”). 

iv 

He  makes  himself  feared,  the  god  of  Tlaxotlan, 

Dust  whirls  upon  the  God  of  Tlaxotlan, 

Dust  whirls  upon  him. 


v 

Our  enemies,  the  people  from  Amantlan,  assemble  ; meet  me  there. 

So  will  in  their  own  house  the  enemy  be.  Meet  me  there. 

VI 

Our  enemies  the  people  of  Pipitlan  assemble  ; meet  me  there. 

So  will  in  their  own  house  the  enemy  be. 

This  song  is  probably  a chant  sung  before  sacrifice  to  the 
god.  The  line  “ He  had  taken  a foot  from  the  man  out  of 
the  cold  land  ” seems  to  allude  to  the  maiming  of  one  of  the 
gods  by  Uitzilopochtli,  or  is  symbolic  of  the  punishment  of 
a human  enemy  by  rendering  him  unfit  for  war  through  the 


SONG  OF  THE  SHIELD 


81 


amputation  of  one  of  his  feet.  Tezcatlipoca,  one  of  whose 
names  was  Yaotzin,  “ the  enemy,”  is  frequently  represented 
as  having  but  one  foot,  and  the  phrase  “ the  man  from  the 
cold  land,”  i.e.  the  North,  applies  almost  certainly  to  him. 
The  rest  of  the  song  relates  to  the  peoples  with  whom 
the  Mexicans  were  frequently  at  war. 

SONG  OF  THE  SHIELD 

i 

In  hie  shield  of  the  young  wife  the  great  warrior  chieftain  was  born. 

In  his  shield  of  the  young  wife  (or  maid)  the  groat  warrior  chieftain  was  born. 

ii 

He  who  gained  his  heroic  title  on  the  serpent  mountain 
In  his  (warrior)  face-painting,  (and  with  the  shield)  teueuelli. 

No  one  in  truth  rises. 

The  earth  quakes 

As  ho  put  on  his  (warrior)  face-painting  (and  his  shield)  teueuelli. 


The  first  couplet  is  obscure  to  me,  and  seems  to  refer  to 
a lost  myth,  which  perhaps  stated  that  the  god  was  born 
of  a virgin.  The  second  strophe,  of  course,  relates  to  the 
slaughter  by  Uitzilopochtli  of  his  brothers  the  Centzonuitz- 
naua. 

PRIESTHOOD 

The  high  priest  of  Uitzilopochtli  was  called  Totec  tlama- 
cazque,  who  also  bore  the  name  of  Quetzalcoatl  (an  honorary 
title,  originating  out  of  the  belief  that  the  god  of  that  name 
was  regarded  as  the  prototype  of  all  religious  orders),  and 
who,  along  with  the  Tlaloc  tlamacazque,  occupied  the  chief 
religious  office  in  Mexico.  He  was  selected  for  his  piety 
and  general  fitness.1 

TEMPLE 

Acosta  describes  Uitzilopochtli’ s great  temple  at  Mexico 
as  follows  : “ There  -was  in  Mexico  this  Cu,  the  famous 
Temple  of  Vitziliputzli,  it  had  a very  great  circuite,  and 

within  a faire  Court.  It  was  built  of  gn t stones,  in  fashion 

1 Sahagun,  Appendix  to  bk.  iii,  c.  ix. 


6 


82 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


of  snakes  tied  one  to  another,  and  the  circuite  was  called 
Coatepantli , which  is,  a circuite  of  snakes  : vppon  the  toppe 
of  every  chamber  and  oratorie  where  the  I dolls  were,  was 
a fine  piller  wrought  with  small  stones,  blacke  as  ieate, 
set  in  goodly  order,  the  ground  raised  vp  with  white  and 
red,  which  below  gave  a great  light.  Vpon  the  top  of  the 
pillar  were  battlements  very  artificially  made,  wrought  like 
snailes  ( caracoles ),  supported  by  two  Indians  of  stone,  sitting, 
holding  candlesticks  in  their  hands,  the  which  were  like 
Croisants  garnished  and  enriched  at  the  ends,  with  yellow 
and  greene  feathers  and  long  fringes  of  the  same.  Within 
the  circuite  of  this  court  there  were  many  chambers  of 
religious  men,  and  others  that  were  appointed  for  the  service 
of  the  Priests  and  Popes,  for  so  they  call  the  soveraigne 
Priests  which  serve  the  I doll. 

“ There  were  foure  gates  or  entries,  at  the  east,  west, 
north,  and  south  ; at  every  one  of  these  gates  beganne  a 
fair  cawsey  of  two  or  three  leagues  long.  There  was  in  the 
midst  of  the  lake  where  the  citie  of  Mexico  is  built,  four  large 
cawseies  in  crosse,  which  did  much  to  beautify  it ; vpon 
every  portall  or  entry  was  a God  or  I doll  having  the  visage 
turned  to  the  causey,  right  against  the  Temple  gate  of 
Vitziliputzli.  There  were  thirtie  steppes  of  thirtie  fadome 
long,  and  they  divided  from  the  circuit  of  the  court  by  a 
streete  that  went  betwixt  them  ; vpon  the  toppe  of  these 
steppes  there  was  a walke  thirtie  foote  broad,  all  plaistered 
with  chalke,  in  the  midst  of  which  walke  was  a Pallisado 
artificially  made  of  very  high  trees,  planted  in  order  a 
fadome  one  from  another.  These  trees  were  very  bigge,  and  all 
pierced  with  small  holes  from  the  foote  to  the  top,  and  there 
were  roddes  did  runne  from  one  tree  to  another,  to  the  which 
were  chained  or  tied  many  dead  mens  heades.  Vpon  every 
rod  were  twentie  sculles,  and  these  ranches  of  sculles  continue 
from  the  foote  to  the  toppe  of  the  tree.  This  Pallissado 
was  full  of  dead  mens  sculls  from  one  end  to  the  other,  the 
which  was  a wonderfull  mournefull  sight  and  full  of  horror. 
These  were  the  heads  of  such  as  had  beene  sacrificed  ; for 
after  they  were  dead  and  had  eaten  the  flesh,  the  head  was 


NATURE  OF  UITZILOPOCHTLI 


83 


delivered  to  the  Ministers  of  the  Temple,  which  tied  them 
in  this  sort  vntil  they  fell  off  by  morcells  ; and  then  had  they 
a care  to  set  others  in  their  places.  Vpon  the  toppe  of  the 
temple  were  two  stones  or  chappells,  and  in  them  were  the 
two  Idolls  which  I have  spoken  of,  Vitziliputzli,  and  his 
companion  Tlaloc.  These  Chappells  were  carved  and  graven 
very  artificially,  and  so  high,  that  to  ascend  vp  to  it,  there 
was  a staire  of  stone  of  sixscore  steppes.  Before  these 
Chambers  or  Chappells,  there  was  a Court  of  fortie  foot 
square,  in  the  midst  thereof,  was  a high  stone  of  five  hand 
breadth,  poynted  in  fashion  of  a Pyramide,  it  was  placed  there 
for  the  sacrificing  of  men  ; for  being  laid  on  their  backes, 
it  made  their  bodies  to  bend,  and  so  they  did  open  them 
and  pull  out  their  hearts,  as  I shall  shew  heereafter.”  1 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Prolonged  deliberation  upon  the  nature  of  Uitzilopochtli 
has  led  me  to  the  conclusion  that  he  was  originally  a personi- 
fication of  the  maguey- plant  ( Agave  americana).  The  grounds 
upon  which  I base  this  hypothesis  are  as  follows  : A certain 
variety  of  the  maguey- plant,  or  metl,  was  known  to  the  Azteca 
of  Mexico-Tenochtitlan  as  Uitzitzilteutli,  or  “ beak  of  the 
humming-bird,”  probably  because  of  the  resemblance  the 
long  spiky  thorns  ( uitztli ) with  which  it  is  covered  bear  to  the 
sharp  beak  of  that  bird  (the  uitzitzilin),  which  suspends  its 
tiny,  web-like  nest  from  the  leaves  of  the  plant  in  question. 
The  connexion  of  Uitzilopochtli  with  the  maguey-\Aa.nt  is 
also  proved  by  at  least  two  of  his  subsidiary  titles.  Thus 
in  the  Ilistoria  de  los  JSIexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas  8 he  is 
alluded  to  as  Magueycoatl,  “ Serpent  of  the  Maguey,”  and 
he  was  also  known  as  Mcxitli,  or  “ Hare  of  the  Maguey,”  a 
title  from  which  one  of  the  quarters  of  Tenochtitlan,  and 
later  the  entire  city,  took  its  name  of  Mexico.  At  the 
panquetzaliztli  festival  held  in  his  honour,  the  warriors  who 
skirmished  on  his  side  in  mimicry  of  his  combat  with  the 

1 Hist.  Nat.  Ind.  in  Purchas  his  Pilgrimes,  bk.  v,  c.  xiii.  See  also  Manuel 
Gamio,  Proc.  19 th  Cong.  Amer.,  Washington,  1915,  for  account  of  discoveries 
when  the  foundations  of  this  temple  were  partly  laid  bare  in  1913. 

1 C.  i. 


84 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


Centzonuitznaua  were  said  to  take  the  part  of  Uitznauatl,1 
or  “ Thorn  that  speaks  oracularly.”  In  certain  of  the  place- 
names  which  are  hieroglyphically  figured  in  the  codices,  too, 
the  element  of  his  name  is  depicted  as  a maguey-plant. 
Sahagun  further  states  that  the  proprietors  of  the  maguey 
plantations  and  the  publicans  who  sold  octli  or  pulque  cut 
their  plants  so  that  they  might  yield  their  juice  during  the 
sign  ce  tecpatl,  the  movable  feast  of  Uitzilopochtli,  in  the 
belief  that,  were  they  tapped  at  this  time,  they  would  yield 
abundantly.2 

Etymologically,  there  is  good  evidence  that  Uitzilopochtli 
originally  represented  the  maguey.  The  word  uitztli  means 
“ thorn,”  and  appears  in  such  compounds  as  Uitzlampa, 
“ Place  of  Thorns  ” (the  South),  and  Uitznauatl,  “ The  Thorn 
that  speaks,”  which,  as  we  have  seen,  was  another,  and 
probably  an  older,  title  of  the  god.  Uitzoctli,  too,  as  Seler 
has  indicated,’  means  “ pricking  pulque,”  newly  fermented 
octli.  It  would  seem,  then,  that  the  name  Uitzilopochtli, 
until  now  generally  translated  as  “ Humming-bird-to-the- 
left,”  and  rendered  by  Seler  “ Humming-bird  of  the  South,” 
must  possess  another  significance  for  us.  Opochtli  certainly 
means  both  “ south  ” and  “ left,”  but  it  also  means 
“ wizard,”  as  in  the  compound  tlahuipuchtli,  “ wizard  who 
spits  fire,”  instanced  by  Torquemada,4  who  states  that  some 
persons  derived  the  god’s  name  from  that  word,  combined 
with  uitzilinin,  “ a humming-bird.”6  It  is  easy  to  see  how 
the  god  came  to  be  associated  with  the  humming-bird, 
which  suspends  its  nest  from  the  foliage  of  the  maguey.  It 

1 Sahagun,  bk.  ii,  c.  xxxiv ; Uitzilopochtli  himself,  as  we  shall  see,  was 
oracular.  In  this  case  I take  it  that  the  octli  distilled  from  the  plant  con- 
ferred the  boon  of  oracular  speech. 

3  The  first  pulque  or  octli,  which  was  called  uitztli,  was  offered  at  this 
festival  as  first-fruits  to  Uitzilopochtli.  The  spirit  distilled  from  the  pulque 
is  still  known  as  mexcal  or  mescal,  and  is  probably  identical  with  the  fiery 
fluid  given  to  the  braves  in  the  service  of  the  god  before  going  into  battle. 

3 Bull,  of  U.S.  Bureau  of  Ethnology,  No.  28,  p.  210. 

4 Monarq.  Ind.,  tom.  ii,  p.  41. 

5 The  Historia  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas  calls  Uitzilopochtli 
omitecilt.  I think  this  should  be  read  ome  tecitl,  “ twice-wizard,”  but  it  may 
read  ome  tecutli,  “ twice-lord.”  But  the  latter  is  cortainly  a title  of  Tona- 
catecutli,  the  creative  deity. 


UITZILOPOCIITLT’S  NAME 


85 


would  appear  to  the  Mexicans  to  emerge  from  the  leaves  of 
that  plant,  and  would  come  to  be  regarded  as  the  form  which 
the  maguey-spirit  took.  Indeed,  the  humming-bird  dress  or 
disguise  is  that  in  which  Uitzilopochtli  is  almost  invariably 
represented  in  the  codices.  It  was  in  the  shape  of  a humming- 
bird that  the  god  was  said  to  have  led  the  Azteca  from  their 
ancient  home  to  the  Valley  of  Anahuac,  and  his  flights  would 
probably  be  considered  ominous  and  suggestive  to  augurs, 
like  those  of  the  Latin  Picus.  But  it  is  possible  that  a cer- 
tain degree  of  confusion  arose  between  the  elements  uitzi- 
linin  (humming-bird)  and  uitztli  (thorn),  that  this  assisted 
the  belief  that  he  took  the  shape  of  a humming-bird  and  that 
the  explanatory  myth  of  the  hero-god  Uitziton  refers  to  this 
bird  in  an  anthropomorphic  shape. 

These  facts  lead  me  to  infer  that  the  name  implies  “ Hum- 
ming-bird Wizard,”  for  Uitzilopochtli  was,  as  Sahagun  says,1 
“ a necromancer  and  friend  of  disguises,”  and  wizards  are 
universally  conceived  of  as  “ sinister,”  which  English  word 
means  both  “ on  the  left  hand  ” and  “ inauspicious,”  and 
“ malign,”  as  does  the  Latin  word  from  which  it  is  derived. 
The  same  holds  good  of  the  Mexican  word.  The  sub-titles 
of  the  god,  Uitznauatl  and  Magueycoatl,  show— the  first, 
that  the  ideas  of  sorcery  and  oracular  speech  were  connected 
with  him  ; and  the  second,  that  he  was  of  a serpentine  or 
venomous  disposition,  like  the  liquor  distilled  from  the  plant 
over  which  he  presided,  the  intoxicating  qualities  of  which 
were  regarded  as  inducing  prophetic  inspiration. 

That  the  maguey- plant  entered  into  Uitzilopochtli’ s 
insignia  seems  probable  from  the  circumstance  that  at  his 
festival  in  the  month  toxcatl  his  dough  image  was  sur- 
mounted by  a flint  knife  half  covered  with  blood.*  In  the 
codices  the  sacrificial  stone  knife  is  frequently  depicted  as 
growing  in  plant-like  bundles  out  of  the  ground,  this  artistic 
and  conventional  form  bearing  a close  resemblance  to  the 
maguey  plant,  with  the  spines  of  which  the  Mexican  priests 
pierced  their  tongues  and  ears  to  procure  a blood-offering. 

His  primary  character  notwithstanding,  Uitzilopochtli  in 
1 Bk.  i,  c.  i.  2 Sahagun,  bk.  ii,  c.  xxiv. 


86 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


later  times  came  to  possess  a very  different  significance  for 
the  Mexicans  of  Tenochtitlan — such  a significance,  in  short, 
as  the  development  of  their  religious  conceptions  demanded. 
Thus  we  find  him  at  the  period  of  the  Spanish  Conquest 
possessing  solar  characteristics  and  a place  in  the  Mexican 
pantheon  which,  if  not  the  most  important,  had  essentially 
the  greatest  local  significance  in  the  city  of  Tenochtitlan, 
of  which  he  was  the  tutelary  god.  His  status  in  the  days 
of  the  second  Motecuhzoma  is,  perhaps,  most  clearly  illus- 
trated by  the  circumstances  of  his  myth  as  given  by  Sahagun, 
which  is  obviously  setiological  and  exhibits  the  influences 
both  of  priestly  contrivance  and  popular  imagination.  His 
mother,  Coatlicue,  has  been  elsewhere  in  this  work  identified 
with  the  earth,  but  in  the  myth  is  euhemerized  as  a pious 
widow.  That  she  was  originally  one  of  those  mountain 
goddesses,  like  Xochiquetzal,  from  whose  sacred  heights  the 
rain  descended  to  the  parched  fields  of  Mexico,  seems  plain 
from  the  name  of  her  abode,  Coatepetl  (“  Serpent  Mountain”), 
the  serpents  of  which  her  skirt  is  composed,  being  sym- 
bolical, perhaps,  of  the  numerous  streams  flowing  from  the 
tarns  or  pools  situated  on  its  lower  acclivities.  That  such 
a mountain  actually  existed  in  the  vicinity  of  Tollan  is 
proved  by  the  statement  of  Sahagun.  Uitzilopochtli  is  the 
sun  which  rises  out  of  the  mountain,1 2  or  is  born  from  it, 
fully  armed  with  the  xiuhcoatl,  or  fire-snake  (the  red  dawn), 
with  which  he  slays  his  sister  Coyolxauhqui,  the  moon,  whose 
lunar  attributes  are  clearly  defined  in  her  face-painting,  which 
comprises  half-moons  and  a shell-motif,  a lunar  symbol. 
Her  nose-plate  is  also  the  half-moon  symbol.  The  Centzon- 
uitznaua,  or  “ Four  Hundred  Southerners,”  are  the  stars 
of  the  Southern  Hemisphere.  These  the  new-born  god  puts 
to  flight  with  ease.*  If  further  verification  of  what  is  obvi- 

1 As  does  an  Egyptian  sun-god. 

2 The  Centzonuitznaua  appear  to  be  the  same  as  the  Tzitzimime,  whom 
Tezozomoc  calls  the  “ gods  of  the  air  who  bring  the  rains,  floods,  thunder- 
claps, and  thunders  and  lightnings  and  had  to  be  placed  round  Uitzilopochtli  ” 
in  order  to  complete  the  construction  of  the  great  teocalli  of  Mexico.  These 
*■  gods  of  the  signs  and  planets,”  in  other  words  the  stars,  were  regarded  as 
demons  of  darkness,  thinks  Seler,  “ only  because  during  a solar  eclipse  the 


UITZILOPOCHTLI  AS  SUN-GOD 


87 


ously  a most  artificial  and  operose  myth  is  required,  it  is 
only  necessary  to  indicate  that  one  of  the  subsidiary  names 
of  Uitzilopochtli,  as  recorded  by  Sahagun,  was  Ilhuicatl 
Xoxouhqui,  “ The  Blue  Heaven,”  the  expanse  of  the  sky, 
showing  that,  like  many  another  sun-god,  he  typified  the 
blue  vault  of  heaven.1  Acosta,  too,  states  that  the  azure 
colour  of  his  throne  signified  “ that  he  sat  in  the  heavens.”  5 
But  the  myth  possesses  an  allegorical  as  well  as  an  aetiological 
character.  Thus  Coatlicue,  the  earth,  is  fructified  by  the 
ball  of  humming-birds’  feathers,  that  is,  by  the  humming- 
bird itself,  which,  in  Mexico,  is  the  means  of  fructifying  the 
plants,  its  movements  causing  the  transfer  of  the  pollen  from 
the  stamens  to  the  germ-cells. 

How,  then,  may  we  reconcile  the  primitive  fetish  of  the 
maguey-plant  with  the  later  solar  deity  ? In  my  view  the 
course  of  development  of  the  concept  of  Uitzilopochtli  is 
much  the  same  as  that  of  the  Hellenic  god  Apollo,  who, 
originally  a spirit  of  the  apple-tree,5  came  in  like  manner 

stars  became  visible  in  the  day  sky.”  I think  it  much  more  probable  that 
they  wore  looked  upon  as  demons  of  darkness  because  they  peopled  the 
darkness  every  night.  “ These,”  says  tho  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Telleriano- 
Bemensis,  “ are  the  sons  of  Citlalicue.”  Now,  Citlalicue  means  “ Starry- 
skirt,”  and  I think  that  here  we  are  not  very  far  from  Coatlicue,  “ Serpent- 
skirt.”  We  know,  too,  that  Citlalicue,  like  Coatlicue,  was  connected  with 
the  cipactli,  tho  earth-beast,  and  with  Chicomecoatl  (“  Seven  Serpents  ”). 
The  later  fusion  of  Citlalicue  with  her  husband  Citlaltonac  or  Tonacatecutli, 
lord  of  the  heavenly  vault,  as  has  been  shown  in  the  remarks  on  these  gods, 
would  give  her  stellar  attributes ; hence  the  seeming  discrepancy  between  her 
and  Coatlicue. 

1 Appendix  to  bk.  ii. 

2 Hist,  de  los  Indios  de  la  Nueva  Espaha,  tom.  ii,  p.  240. 

3 See  Rendel  Harris,  The  Ascent  of  Olympus,  passim.  In  his  Ascent  of 
Olympus  Dr.  Rendel  Harris  has  shown  that  the  sacred  oak  of  Zeus  was 
regarded  as  “ the  animistic  repository  of  the  thunder,  and  in  that  sense  the 
dwelling-place  of  Zeus  . . . that  the  woodpecker  who  nested  in  it  . . . was 
none  other  than  Zeus  himself,  and  it  may  turn  out  that  Athena,  who  sprang 
from  the  head  of  the  thunder-oak,  was  the  owl  that  lived  in  one  of  its  hollows  ” 
(p.  57). 

In  the  same  way,  it  may  bo  that  the  maguey  plant  may  have  been  regarded 
by  the  Mexicans  as  a repository  of  thunder  and  the  heavenly  fire.  Octli,  its 
sap,  was  connected  with  fire  (see  octli  gods,  “ Nature  and  Status  ”),  and 
Uitzilopochtli  was  the  humming-bird  who  dwelt  among  its  leaves.  He  springs 
from  his  mother’s  body  fully  armed,  as  does  Athena  from  the  head  of  Zeus, 
A similar  train  of  thought  appears  to  be  present  in  both  ideas. 


88 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


to  be  regarded  as  the  god  of  the  sun.  But,  to  adhere  to  the 
Mexican  concept,  the  sun  was  regarded  by  the  peoples  of 
Anahuac  as  the  great  eater  of  hearts  and  drinker  of  blood. 
These  must  be  obtained  for  him  by  war,  or  he  would  perish, 
and  all  creation  along  with  him.  Uitzilopochtli,  as  the  spirit 
of  the  maguey- plant,  was  the  tribal  fetish  of  the  Azteca, 
and  therefore  their  natural  leader  in  battle.  The  connexion 
is  obvious  and  does  not  require  to  be  laboured.  Because 
of  his  tribal  leadership  in  war,  a governance  of  which  Mexican 
myth  and  history  bear  eloquent  testimony,  he  became  con- 
founded with  the  luminary  which  demanded  blood  and  lived 
by  human  strife. 

The  solar  connexion  of  the  octli  liquor  yielded  by  his 
plant  is  also  most  clear.  Says  Duran  1 : “ The  octli  was  a 
favourite  offering  to  the  gods,  and  especially  to  the  god  of 
fire.  Sometimes  it  was  placed  before  a fire  in  vases  ; some- 
times it  was  scattered  upon  the  flames  with  a brush  (asper- 
gillum ?)  ; at  other  times  it  was  poured  out  around  the  fire- 
place.” Fire  is,  of  course,  a surrogate  of  the  sun,  and  Seler 
has  already  identified  Uitzilopochtli  as  a fire-god  in  virtue 
of  his  status  as  a sun-deity,*  showing  that  the  drilling  of  the 
solar  fire  before  the  beginning  of  the  new  cycle  of  fifty- 
two  years  was  deferred  until  the  'panquetzalitztli , the  great 
feast  of  Uitzilopochtli.  Jacinto  de  la  Serna,  too,  says  that 
the  octli  ritual  invoked  the  “ shining  Rose ; light-giving 
Rose,  to  receive  and  rejoice  my  heart  before  the  god.”  The 
“ rose,”  of  course,  referring  to  the  fire  or  sun.  It  would 
seem,  however,  that  before  he  became  confounded  or  iden- 
tified with  the  sun,  Uitzilopochtli  may  have  possessed  a 
lunar  significance,  and  this  may  have  obtained  in  the  period 
while  yet  the  calendar  was  reckoned  upon  a lunar  basis 
and  its  solar  connexion  still  remained  undefined.  The 
name  Mexitli,  which  has  already  been  remarked  upon,  and 
which  means  “ Hare  of  the  Maguey ,”  appears  to  place 
Uitzilopochtli  upon  a level  with  the  other  gods  of  octli,  if 
not  to  class  him  as  one  of  these.  It  bears  a suspicious 

1 Manuel  de  Ministros,  p.  35. 

* Commentary  on  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  p.  91. 


UITZILOPOCHTLI  AS  SERPENT 


89 


resemblance,  too,  to  the  name  of  the  Moon-god,  Metztli. 
The  hare  or  rabbit  in  Mexico  was  invariably  associated  both 
with  the  moon  and  the  octli- gods,  whose  chief  characteristic, 
perhaps,  is  the  lunar  nose-plate.  But  among  many  of  the 
native  tribes  of  North  America  the  hare  or  rabbit  is  the 
representative  of  the  sun  or  the  dawn,  under  the  names  of 
Michabo,  Manibozho,  Wabos,  and  so  forth,  being  described 
in  myth  as  a warrior,  hero-god  and  culture-bringer.  Perhaps 
the  Nahua,  while  still  in  a more  northern  region  where  the 
agave  wras  unknown  to  them,  worshipped  the  rabbit  of  the 
sun  or  moon,  and  on  establishing  themselves  in  a region 
where  the  maguey  was  one  of  the  salient  features  in  the 
landscape,  fused  his  myth  with  that  of  a newly-acquired 
fetish,  discarding  later  the  more  ancient  belief,  or  retaining 
but  a confused  memory  of  it.  But  this  train  of  reasoning 
lacks  evidence  to  support  it.  Nor  need  the  consideration 
of  Uitzilopochtli’s  serpent-form  detain  us  long.  I think 
I see  in  the  myth  which  recounts  how  the  Azteca,  on  settling 
in  Tenochtitlan,  beheld  an  eagle  perched  on  a cactus  with 
a serpent  in  its  talons,  some  relation  to  Uitzilopochtli,  but 
what  it  precisely  portends  is  still  obscure  to  me.  In  any  case 
the  symbol  of  the  eagle  enters  into  his  insignia,  as  does 
that  of  the  serpent.  We  will  recall  that  he  was  known  as 
Magueycoatl,1  “ Serpent  of  the  Maguey .”  Again  the  solar 
character  of  the  serpent  in  America,  as  elsewhere,  readily 
accounts  for  his  later  connexion  with  it,  and  for  the  pre- 
valence of  serpentine  forms  in  his  insignia  and  temple. 
But  I confess  that  these  two  points  of  contact  with  the  ser- 
pent do  not  altogether  satisfy  me  as  regards  the  god’s  con- 
nexion with  it,  nor  does  the  fact  of  the  serpentine  character 
of  his  mother  commend  itself  to  me  as  altogether  explanatory 
of  this,  and  I think  we  must  look  to  Uitzilopochtli’s  nature  as 
a wizard  or  sorcerer  to  enlighten  us  upon  this  point.  Jacinto 
de  la  Serna  ! states  that  in  his  time  some  of  the  Mexican 
conjurers  used  a wand  around  which  was  fastened  a living 

1 Maguey  is  an  Antillean  word  imported  into  Mexico  by  the  Spaniards, 
but  the  use  of  a post-Columbian  word  does  not  exclude  the  possibility  of  a 
synonymous  pre-Columbian  form. 

s Manuel  de  Ministros,  p.  37. 


90  THE  GREAT  GODS 

serpent,  in  much  the  same  way  as  the  priests  of  the  Pueblo 
Indians  do  at  the  present  day ; and  as  the  great  invisible 
medicine  man  of  the  tribe,  Uitzilopochtli  may  have  been 
thought  of  as  doing  the  same.  “ Who  is  a manito  ? ” asks 
the  Meda  chant  of  the  Algonquins.  “ He,”  is  the  reply, 
“ who  walketh  with  a serpent,  he  is  a manito .”  For  the  con- 
nexion of  the  Indian  magicians  with  the  serpent  the  reader  is 
referred  to  the  pages  of  Brinton.1 

In  many  lands  the  serpent  is  the  symbol  of  reproductive 
power  and  has  a phallic  significance.  In  Mexico  he  casts 
his  winter  skin  near  the  time  of  Uitzilopochtli’s  first  festival, 
about  the  beginning  of  the  rainy  season.  Moreover,  this 
reptile  is  connected  with  soothsaying,  and  in  this  respect 
resembles  the  god. 

His  myths,  as  well  as  his  status  in  Mexico-Tenochtitlan, 
of  which  he  was  the  tutelary  deity,  make  it  plain  that  Uitzilo- 
pochtli was  a tribal  god  of  the  Azteca,  their  national  god  par 
excellence.  The  brave  Quauhtemoc,  the  last  native  defender 
of  the  city,  imagined  himself  invincible  when  armed  with 
the  bow  and  arrows  of  Uitzilopochtli,  and  wc  know  that  the 
advice  of  the  oracle  of  that  deity  was  sought  by  the  Mexicans 
when  hard  pressed  by  the  Conquistadores. 

Nor  is  there  any  dubiety  regarding  his  character  as  a god 
of  war.  This  may  have  arisen  from  the  circumstance  that 
he  presided  over  the  liquor  which  was  given  to  the  troops 
when  about  to  engage  in  battle,  or,  as  has  been  said,  may  have 
followed  his  promotion  to  the  rank  of  sun-god,  the  deity  of 
human  sacrifice,  the  god  who  demanded  human  hearts  and 
blood.  A larger  number  of  captives  were  devoted  to  him 
than  to  any  other  divinity,  and  as  the  waging  of  war  was 
the  only  means  by  which  so  many  victims  might  be  pro- 
cured, the  sun  would  naturally  become  the  great  patron  of 
strife. 

As  the  sun  is  the  great  central  cause  of  all  agricultural  suc- 
cess, so  Uitzilopochtli  came  to  be  looked  upon  as  one  of  the 
promoters  of  plant  growth,  as  is  witnessed  by  his  festivals, 
which  synchronize  with  the  first  rainfall  of  the  year,  the 
1 Myths  of  the  New  World,  pp.  129  £f. 


TEZCATLIPOCA 


91 


growth  of  plant  life,  and  the  end  of  the  fruitful  season, 
when,  in  the  form  of  a paste  image,  the  god  was  slain.  He 
is  thus  the  sun  of  the  season  of  plenty,  as  his  “ brother  ” 
Tezcatlipoca  represents  that  of  sereness  and  drought.  lie 
is  the  “ young  wrarrior  ” of  the  South,  who  drives  away  the 
evil  spirits  of  the  dry  season  and  causes  the  land  to  rejoice. 

TEZCATLIPOCA  = “ FIERY  MIRROR  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Nahua  territory  generally,  with  extension  into 
Central  America  (as  Hurakan). 

Minor  Names  : 

Titlacahuan — “ He  whose  slaves  we  are.” 

Yaotl — “ Enemy.” 

Yaomauitl — “ Dreaded  Enemy.” 

Chico  Yaotl — “ Enemy  on  one  side.” 

Necoc  Yaotl — “ Enemy  on  both  sides.” 

Moyocoyotzin — “ Capricious  Lord.” 

Uitznahuac  Yaotl — ■“  Warrior  in  the  Southern  House  or  Temple.” 
Tlacochcalco  Yaotl — “ Warrior  in  the  (Northern)  Spear  House.” 
Telpochtli — “ The  Youth.” 

Ne^aualpilli — “ Fasting  Lord.” 

Itztli — “ Obsidian.” 

Festivals  : Toxcatl,  teotleco,  and  the  movable  feasts  ce  miquiztli, 
ce  malinalli,  and  ome  coatl. 

Compass  Directions  : North  and  south  in  different  aspects.  Guardian 
of  the  fifth  quarter,  “ the  below  and  above.” 

Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  18th  day,  tecpatl ; ruler  of  the  second 
tonalamatl  quarter,  the  region  of  the  north  ; as  Itztli,  second 
of  the  nine  lords  of  the  night  ; ruler  of  the  13th  day-count 
acatl. 

Symbol  : The  smoking  or  fiery  mirror  ; the  obsidian  knife. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — By  far  the  best  representation  of  Tezcat- 
lipoca in  any  of  the  manuscripts  is  that  to  be  found  on 
page  17  of  Codex  Borgia,  where  he  is  seen  in  connexion  with 
the  insignia  of  the  twenty  calendric  days.  The  picture  on 
the  lower  right  portion  of  page  21  is  without  these  symbols, 
but  is  almost  identical  with  the  former  figure.  The  god 
wears  the  black  body-paint  of  a priest,  and  his  face-painting 
is  similar  to  that  of  Uitzilopochtli,  that  is,  it  consists  of 


92 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


black  horizontal  stripes  upon  a yellow  ground,  the  latter 
having  the  same  origin  as  in  the  case  of  Uitzilopochtli. 
From  his  back  rises  a very  large  and  elaborate  bunch  of 
feather  plumes,  which  arches  itself  over  his  head.  His 
hair,  dressed  in  a manner  which  resembles  the  “ night- 
hair  ” of  Mictlantecutli,  is  ornamented  with  feather-balls 
as  indicating  his  sacrificial  character,  and  in  the  picture  on 
page  21  several  of  these  depend  from  his  side-locks.  He 
wears  the  white  ring  ( anauatl ) on  his  breast,  and  a short 
tunic,  seemingly  covered  with  stellar  devices.  His  right 
foot  ends  in  the  smoking  mirror  symbolic  of  his  name  and 
in  which  he  was  supposed  to  observe  the  actions  of  humanity, 
and  on  page  21  he  carries  the  jaguar-skin  purse  in  which 
the  priests  placed  copal  for  incense.  In  his  left  hand  he 
holds  a shield,  the  field  of  which  is  a tawny  yellow  in  colour, 
traversed  by  two  white  stripes,  and  a paper  banner.  On 
page  3 the  god  is  shown  in  a springing  attitude.  He  wears  the 
face  and  body- paint  characteristic  of  him,  and  the  warrior’s 
headdress,  with  hair  tousled  on  one  side,  and  the  blue  nasal 
rod,  with  square  plaque,  falling  over  the  mouth.  At  the 
side  of  the  head  is  the  fiery  mirror  which  gives  him  his  name. 
On  page  14  he  is  seen  wearing  on  his  breast,  and  fastened  to 
two  strong  red  leather  straps,  the  white  ring  tcocuitlaanauatl, 
an  ornament  resembling  a large,  round  eye.  On  his  back  is 
a feather  device  known  as  the  “ quetzal  feather-pot.”  The 
right  foot,  as  in  other  pictures  of  him,  is  replaced  by  a small 
fiery  mirror  and  his  left  by  an  obsidian  knife. 

Codex  Borbonicus.  — In  this  manuscript  Tezcatlipoca  is 
depicted  with  the  yellow-and-black  face-painting,  but  in  his 
form  as  a black  god.  At  his  forehead  is  the  smoking  mirror, 
on  his  back  the  large  quetzal  - feather  ornament  with  a 
banner,  on  his  breast  the  anauatl,  and  round  his  loins  the 
hip-cloth,  with  a bordering  of  red  eyes.  On  his  feet  he 
wears  sandals  showing  the  motif  of  the  obsidian  snake,  and 
his  headdress  is  painted  with  the  stellar  symbol,  the  round 
white  spots  on  a black  ground,  which  typifies  the  night  sky. 
Here  also  we  see  two  bamboo  staves  attached  to  his  neck — 
undoubtedly  the  collar  worn  by  captives  or  slaves  which 


(From  Codex  Valicanus  A,  sheet  44  Verso.) 


INSIGNIA  OF  TEZCATLIPOCA 


93 


rendered  flight  impossible,  and  which  Tezcatlipoca  wears 
to  symbolize  his  enslavement  of  the  Mexican  people  and  in 
allusion  to  his  name  Titlacauan,  which  means  “ He  whose 
slaves  we  are.”  The  spear  and  the  net-pouch  in  this  place 
recall  the  insignia  of  Mixcoatl,  and  seem  to  indicate  that 
Tezcatlipoca  was  a god  of  the  Chichimec  or  hunting  folk 
of  the  North  Steppes,  or  perhaps  it  may  merely  symbolize 
the  proneness  of  all  stellar,  lunar  and  solar  deities  in  Mexico 
to  the  chase. 

Tonalamatl  of  the  Aubin  Collection. — In  this  manuscript 
Tezcatlipoca  appears  as  the  representative  of  the  Moon- 
god  and  sits  opposite  the  Sun-god.  He  is  shown  with  his 
usual  attributes  and  face-painting,  the  smoking  mirror  in 
the  region  of  the  ear,  the  white  ring  on  his  breast,  and  on 
his  back  the  quetzalcomitl,  the  large  quetzal- feather  ornament 
in  which  a banner  is  stuck.  In  his  right  hand  he  holds 
several  of  the  agave-spikes  which  the  priests  employed  for 
piercing  the  tongue.  In  this  manuscript  the  Death-god  is 
also  depicted  as  Tezcatlipoca,  and  wears  his  body-and-face 
painting  and  his  general  insignia,  as  well  as  the  rosette  at 
the  nape  of  the  neck.  In  this  place,  however,  the  snail- 
shaped shield  rises  above  the  forehead,  which  is  also  decor- 
ated with  a row  of  feather  balls  and  a single  arara  plume. 

Codex  Magliabecchiano. — A good  illustration  of  Tezcat- 
lipoca will  be  found  on  page  89  of  this  codex.  The  figure 
of  the  god  is  surrounded  by  footprints,  symbolic,  probably, 
of  the  circumstance  that  as  the  youngest  and  swiftest  of  the 
gods  he  arrived  first  at  the  teotleco  festival  (coming  of  the 
gods)  and  impressed  his  footprint  on  the  heap  of  maize 
arranged  by  the  priests  for  its  reception  in  order  that  they 
might  know  of  his  coming.  He  wears  a large  panache  of 
green  feathers,  consisting  of  two  parts  ; that  immediately 
above  the  face  being  inserted  in  a tumbler-shaped  ornament 
painted  blue,  with  a red  rim,  and  having  six  white  disks 
upon  its  field.  To  the  lower  part  of  this  is  joined  a rainbow- 
like device  in  various  colours,  from  which  springs  the  main 
part  of  the  feather  panache.  The  upper  fore-part  of  the 
face  is  painted  yellow,  the  rear  portion  purple  or  grey,  and 


94 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


the  region  about  the  mouth  is  bright  red.  He  is  bearded. 
The  tunic  is  white,  with  a white  shoulder-knot,  and  a bunch 
of  maize  springs  from  the  right  shoulder.  On  the  breast  is 
the  god’s  mirror,  and  at  the  waist  an  ornament  or  symbol 
resembling  the  Maya  Kin  (sun)  sign,  painted  blue.  The  rest 
of  the  body-colour  is  purple-grey.  In  the  left  hand  he  carries 
an  atlatl,  or  spear-thrower,  with  a serpent’s  head  having  a 
brown  mane,  and  bearing  a resemblance  to  some  horse-like 
ornamental  motifs  found  in  Guatemala.  In  the  right  hand 
he  bears  a shield,  the  field  of  which  is  divided  into  two 
parts,  the  right  painted  blue  and  bearing  what  would  seem 
to  be  the  nose-ornament  of  the  pulque- gods,  whilst  the  left 
resembles  the  design  found  on  the  skirt  of  the  Earth-goddess. 
The  shield  is  crossed  behind  by  four  darts  and  is  surmounted 
by  a befeathered  banner.  In  this  place  Tezcatlipoca  is 
undoubtedly  represented  in  his  variant  of  “ the  young 
warrior,”  as  his  equipment  shows. 

Sahagun  MS.  (Biblioteca  del  Palacio). — The  god’s  feather 
crown  is  set  with  obsidian  knives.  His  face  is  barred  with 
horizontal  lines  of  black,  and  on  his  back  he  carries  a basket 
filled  with  guefcaZ-fcathers.  His  arm-ring  is  set  with  obsidian 
knives,  and  one-half  of  his  leg  is  painted  black.  On  his 
legs  and  feet  he  wears  shells  and  sandals,  the  latter  the 
so-called  “ obsidian  sandals,”  painted  with  a picture  of  the 
obsidian  snake.  His  arms  are  covered  with  paper  fans. 
His  shield  is  inlaid  with  feather  balls,  and  in  one  of  his  hands 
he  holds  the  “ seeing  ” or  scrying  implement  tlachialoni. 

Acosta,  describing  Tezcatlipoca,  says  1 : “ They  called 

this  idol  Tezcallipuca,  he  was  made  of  black,  shining  stone 
like  to  Jayel,  being  attired  with  some  Gentile  devises  after 
their  manner.  It  had  ear-rings  of  gold  and  silver,  and  through 
the  nether  lip  a small  canon  of  christall,  in  length  half  a 
foote,  in  the  which  they  sometimes  put  a greene  feather, 
and  sometimes  an  azure,  which  made  it  resemble  sometimes 
an  emerald  and  sometimes  a turquois.  It  had  the  haire 
broided  and  bound  up  with  a haire-lace  of  gold  burnished, 

1 Hist.  Nat.  Ind.,  c.  ix,  bk.  v (English  translation  from  Purchas  his 
Pilgrimes). 


ACOSTA  ON  TEZCATLIPOCA 


95 


at  the  end  whereof  did  hang  an  eare  of  gold,  with  two  fire- 
brands of  smoke  painted  therein  which  did  signify  the 
praires  of  the  afflicted  and  sinners  that  he  heard,  when 
they  recommended  themselves  to  him.  Betwixt  the  two 
eares  hanged  a number  of  small  herons.  He  had  a jewell 
hanging  at  his  neck  so  great  that  it  covered  all  his  stomake. 
Upon  his  armes  bracelets  of  gold,  upon  his  navill  a rich,  green 
stone,  and  in  his  left  hand  a fanne  of  precious  feathers,  of 
greene,  azure  and  yellow,  which  came  forth  of  a looking- 
glasse  of  gold,  shining  and  well-burnished,  and  that  signified, 
that  within  this  looking-glasse  he  saw  whatever  was  done 
in  the  world.  They  called  this  glasse  or  chaston  of  gold 
irlacheaya,1  which  signifies  his  glass  for  to  look  in.  In  his 
right  hand  he  held  foure  darts  which  signified  the  chastise- 
ment he  gave  to  the  wicked  for  their  sins.  . . . They  held 
this  idoll  Tescatlipuca  for  the  god  of  drought,  of  famine, 
barrenness  and  pestilence.  And  therefore  they  painted  him 
in  another  form,  being  set  in  great  majesty  upon  a stoole, 
compassed  in  with  a red  curtin,  painted  and  wrought  with 
the  heads  and  bones  of  dead  men.  In  the  left  hand  it  had  a 
target  with  five  pines,  like  unto  pine  apples  of  cotton,  and  in 
the  right  a little  dart  with  a threatening  countenance,  and 
the  arm  stretched  out  as  if  he  would  cast  it  and  from  the 
target  came  foure  darts.  It  had  the  countenance  of  an 
angry  man  and  in  choller,  the  body  all  painted  blacke  and 
the  head  full  of  quailes  feathers.” 

Bernal  Diaz  says  of  him  (bk.  vi.  c.  91) : “ Then  we  saw 
on  the  other  side  on  the  left  hand  there  stood  the  other  great 
image  the  same  height  as  Iluichilobos,  and  it  had  a face  like 
a bear  2 and  eyes  that  shone,  made  of  their  mirrors  which 
they  call  Tezcat,  and  the  body  plastered  with  precious  stones 
like  that  of  Huichilobos,  for  they  say  that  the  two  are 
brothers  ; and  this  Tezcatepuca  was  the  god  of  Hell  and  had 
charge  of  the  souls  of  the  Mexicans,  and  his  body  was  girt 
with  figures  like  little  devils  with  snakes’  tails.” 

Face-mask. — When  Cortez  landed  at  Vera  Cruz,  the 

1 Obviously  an  error  for  tlachialoni. 

2 More  probably  like  a jaguar,  one  of  the  forms  of  the  god. 


90 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


messengers  of  Motecuhzoma  tendered  him,  along  with  other 
presents,  “ the  ornaments  or  finery  with  which  Tezcatlipoca 
was  decorated.”  The  mask  belonging  to  this  costume  is 
still  in  existence,  and  is  to  be  seen  in  the  room  devoted  to 
American  antiquities  in  the  British  Museum.  It  consists 
of  a human  skull  encrusted  with  mosaic  in  alternate  bands 
of  black  and  green,  the  nasal  cavity  being  set  with  a red 
stone  and  the  eyes  with  pyrites  ringed  with  white. 

Statuette. — A statuette  of  Tezcatlipoca  from  the  Valley 
of  Mexico,  and  now  in  the  Uhde  collection,  shows  the  god 
as  nude,  with  the  exception  of  a loin-cloth  and  a flat  head- 
dress, rising  in  the  middle. 

Tezcatlipoca  in  His  Black  and  Red  Forms. — Tezcatlipoca 
was  regarded  by  the  Mexican  people  as  possessing  two 
definite  forms,  the  Black  and  the  Red.  In  this  paragraph 
we  will  deal  only  with  the  insignia  of  these  and  not  with 
their  mythological  significance,  which  we  will  attempt  to 
explain  in  its  proper  place.  Perhaps  the  best  and  most 
classical  examples  of  these  forms  we  possess  are  to  be  ob- 
served on  sheet  21  of  Codex  Borgia,  on  both  halves  of  which 
we  see  the  two  forms  represented  as  parallel  figures,  closely 
resembling  one  another  in  nearly  every  detail.  It  should 
at  once  be  stated  that  the  Red  Tezcatlipoca  is  merely  a 
variant  of  Xipe,  and  indeed  in  one  place  in  Codex  Vaticanus  B 
we  observe  that  his  loin-cloth  forks  in  the  swallow-tail 
fashion  noticeable  in  the  loin-cloth  of  that  god,  and,  generally 
speaking,  the  red  colours  he  wears  are  those  of  the  roseate 
spoon-bill,  the  feathers  of  which  arc  typical  of  Xipe's  dress. 
These  pictures  in  the  Codex  Borgia  are  supplemented  by  two 
on  sheets  85  and  86  of  V aticanus  B,  where  the  swallow-tail 
ends  of  the  loin-cloth  and  the  nasal  rod  show  distinctly  that 
the  Red  Tezcatlipoca  is  only  a form  of  Xipe.  The  Black 
Tezcatlipoca  opposite  him  is,  however,  represented  with  the 
striped  body-paint  of  Tlauizcalpantecutli,  the  arms  being 
entirely  black.  In  the  Borgia  paintings  the  Black  Tezcat- 
lipoca wears  the  black  body-paint  of  the  priest,  his  face- 
paint  is  alternately  black  and  yellow,  he  has  the  warrior’s 
tousled  hair,  the  nasal  rod  with  the  square  plaque  falling 


THE  TOXCATL  FESTIVAL 


97 


over  the  mouth,  the  forked  heron-feather  adornment  in  his 
hair,  and  on  his  temple  the  smoking  mirror.  The  foot, 
too,  is  torn  off  and  replaced  by  a smoking  mirror — all  sym- 
bolical of  the  “ standard  ” character  of  the  god’s  sable  form. 
The  Red  Tezcatlipoca  represented  in  the  upper  portion  of 
Borgia  (sheet  21)  has  a yellow  face-painting  striped  with 
horizontal  bands  of  red  and  his  body-paint  is  red.  On  the 
red  bands  crossing  the  face  is  seen  the  stellar  eye.  A brown 
fillet  encircles  a red  headdress,  and  the  torn-off  foot  is  also 
replaced  by  the  smoking  mirror.  On  his  back  is  seen  the 
bundle  of  the  merchant,  surmounted  by  the  arara  bird,  two 
symbols  which  indicate  his  southern  character.  The  repre- 
sentation of  the  Red  Tezcatlipoca  in  the  lower  portion  of 
sheet  21  is  practically  similar  to  this,  save  that  he  wears 
feather  balls  and  heron  plumes  in  his  headdress,  is  without 
the  merchant’s  pack,  and  holds  in  one  hand  the  jaguar-skin 
copal-bag  of  the  priests  and  the  smoking  rubber  ball  used  as 
incense. 

These  forms  of  the  god  have  been  laid  down  in  myth  as 
distinctly  separate  deities,  especially  in  the  Historia  de  los 
Mexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas.1 

FESTIVALS 

Toxcatl. — This,  one  of  the  most  important  of  all  the  Mexi- 
can festivals,  is  described  by  Sahagun  substantially  as 
follows : The  fifth  month  called  toxcatl  and  sometimes 

tepopochuiliztli,  was  begun  by  the  most  solemn  and  famous 
feast  of  the  year,  in  honour  of  the  principal  Mexican  god, 
a god  known  by  a multitude  of  names  and  epithets,  among 
which  were  Tezcatlipoca,  Titlacaoan,  Yautl,  Telpuchtli, 
and  Tlamatzincatl.  A year  before  this  feast  one  of  the  most 
distinguished  of  the  captives  reserved  for  sacrifice  was 
chosen  for  his  superior  grace  and  personal  appearance  from 
among  all  his  fellows,  and  given  in  charge  to  the  priestly 
functionaries  called  calpixques.  These  instructed  him  with 
great  diligence  in  all  the  arts  pertaining  to  good  breeding, 

1 See  precis  in  chapter  on  Cosmogony. 


7 


98 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


such  as  playing  on  the  flute,  deportment,  conversation, 
saluting  those  he  happened  to  meet,  the  use  of  straight  cane 
tobacco-pipes  and  of  flowers.  He  was  attended  upon  by 
eight  pages,  who  were  clad  in  the  livery  of  the  palace,  and  had 
perfect  liberty  to  go  where  he  pleased  night  and  day  ; while 
his  food  was  so  rich  that,  to  guard  against  his  growing  too 
fat,  it  was  at  times  necessary  to  vary  the  diet  by  a purge 
of  salt  and  water.  Everywhere  honoured  and  adored  as 
the  living  image  and  accredited  representative  of  Tezcat- 
lipoca,  he  went  about  playing  on  a small  shrill  clay  flute  or 
fife,  and  adorned  with  rich  and  curious  raiment  furnished 
by  the  king,  while  all  he  met  did  him  reverence,  kissing  the 
earth.  All  his  body  and  face  was  painted  black,  his  long 
hair  flowed  to  the  waist ; his  head  was  covered  with  white 
hens’  feathers  stuck  on  with  resin,  and  covered  with  a 
garland  of  the  flowers  called  izquixochitl,1  while  two  strings 
of  the  same  flowers  crossed  his  body  in  the  fashion  of  cross- 
belts. Earrings  of  gold,  a necklace  of  precious  stones,  with 
a great  dependent  gem  hanging  to  the  breast,  a lip-ornament 
( barbote ) of  sea-shell,  bracelets  of  gold  above  the  elbow  on 
each  arm,  and  strings  of  gems  called  macuextlu  winding  from 
wrist  almost  to  elbow,  were  part  of  his  ornaments.  He  was 
covered  with  a rich,  beautifully  fringed  mantle  of  netting, 
and  bore  on  his  shoulders  something  like  a purse  made  of 
white  cloth  of  a span  square,  ornamented  with  tassels  and 
a fringe.  A white  maxtle  of  a span  broad  went  about  his 
loins,  the  two  ends,  curiously  wrought,  falling  in  front 
almost  to  the  knee.  Little  bells  of  gold  hung  upon  his  feet, 
which  were  shod  with  painted  sandals  called  ocelunacace. 

All  this  was  the  attire  he  wore  from  the  beginning  of  his 
year  of  preparation  ; but  twenty  days  before  the  coming 
of  the  festival  they  changed  his  vestments,  washed  away 
the  paint  or  dye  from  his  skin,  and  cut  down  his  long  hair 
to  the  length,  and  arranged  it  after  the  fashion,  of  the  hair 
of  the  captains,  tying  it  up  on  the  crown  of  the  head  with 
feathers  and  fringe  and  two  gold-buttoned  tassels.  At  the 
same  time  they  married  to  him  four  damsels,  who  had 

1 The  Morelosia  huahita  of  the  family  Styracihes. 


(From  Codex  Borgia.) 


(From  the  Sabagun  MS.) 


U8 1 


(Pottery  figure  from  the  Uhde  Collection.) 
TEZCATLIPOCA. 


SACRIFICE  OF  THE  MAN-GOD 


99 


been  pampered  and  educated  for  this  purpose,  and  who 
were  surnamed  respectively  after  the  four  goddesses,  Xochi- 
quetzal,  Xilonen,  Atlantonan,  and  Uixtociuatl.  Five  days 
before  the  great  day  of  the  feast,  the  day  of  the  feast  being 
counted  one,  all  the  people,  high  and  low,  the  king  it  would 
appear  being  alone  excepted,  w'ent  out  to  celebrate  with  the 
man-god  a solemn  banquet  and  dance,  in  the  ward  called 
Tecanman  ; the  fourth  day  before  the  feast  the  same  was 
done  in  the  ward  in  which  was  guarded  the  statue  of 
Tezcatlipoca.  The  little  hill  or  island  called  Tepetzinco, 
rising  out  of  the  waters  of  the  Lake  of  Mexico,  was  the  scene 
of  the  next  day’s  solemnities  ; which  were  renewed  for  the 
last  time  on  the  next  day,  or  that  immediately  preceding 
the  great  day,  on  another  like  island  called  Tepelpulco,  or 
Tepepulco.  There,  with  the  four  women  who  had  been 
given  to  him  for  his  consolation,  the  honoured  victim  was  put 
into  a covered  canoe  usually  reserved  for  the  sole  use  of  the 
king,  and  he  was  carried  across  the  lake  to  a place  called 
Tlapitzaoayan,  near  the  road  that  goes  from  Yztapalapan 
to  Chaleo,  at  a place  where  was  a little  hill  called  Acaccuilpan, 
or  Cabaltepec.  Here  left  him  the  four  beautiful  girls  whose 
society  for  twenty  days  he  had  enjoyed,  they  returning  to 
the  capital  with  all  the  people.  There  accompanied  him 
only  those  eight  attendants  who  had  been  with  him  all  the 
year.  Almost  alone,  done  with  the  joys  of  beauty,  banquet, 
and  dance,  bearing  a bundle  of  his  flutes,  he  walked  to  a little 
cu,  some  distance  from  the  road  mentioned  above,  and  about 
a league  removed  from  the  city.  He  marched  up  the  temple 
steps  ; and  as  he  ascended  he  dashed  down  and  broke  on 
every  step  one  of  the  flutes  that  he  had  been  accustomed 
to  play  on  in  the  days  of  his  prosperity.  He  reached  the 
top,  where  he  was  sacrificed.  From  the  sacrificial  stone  his 
body  was  not  hurled  down  the  steps,  but  wras  carried  by  four 
men  down  to  the  tzompantli,  to  the  place  of  the  spitting  of 
heads. 

In  this  feast  of  toxcatl,  in  the  cu  called  Uitznahuac,  where 
the  image  of  Uitzilopochtli  was  always  kept,  the  priests 
made  a bust  of  this  god  out  of  tzoalli  dough,  with  pieces  of 


100 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


mizquitl  ‘-wood  inserted  by  way  of  bones.  They  decorated 
it  with  his  ornaments  ; putting  on  a jacket  wrought  over 
with  human  bones,  a mantle  of  very  thin  nequen,  and  another 
mantle  called  the  Tlaquaquallo,  covered  with  rich  feathers, 
fitting  the  head  below  and  widening  out  above  ; in  the 
middle  of  this  stood  up  a little  rod,  also  decorated  with 
feathers,  and  sticking  into  the  top  of  the  rod  was  a flint 
knife  half  covered  with  blood.  The  image  was  set  on  a plat- 
form made  of  pieces  of  wood  resembling  snakes,  and  so 
arranged  that  heads  and  tails  alternated  all  the  way  round  ; 
the  whole  borne  by  many  captains  and  men  of  war.  Before 
this  image  and  platform  a number  of  strong  youths  carried 
an  enormous  sheet  of  paper  resembling  pasteboard,  twenty 
fathoms  long,  one  fathom  broad,  and  a little  less  than  an 
inch  thick  ; it  was  supported  by  spear-shafts  arranged  in 
pairs  of  one  shaft  above  and  one  below  the  paper,  while 
persons  on  either  side  of  the  paper  held  one  of  these  pairs 
in  one  hand.  When  the  procession,  with  dancing  and  sing- 
ing, reached  the  cu  to  be  ascended,  the  platform  was  care- 
fully and  cautiously  hoisted  up  by  cords  attached  to  its  four 
corners,  the  image  was  set  on  a seat,  and  those  who  carried 
the  paper  rolled  it  up  and  set  down  the  roll  before  the  bust 
of  the  god.  It  was  sunset  when  the  image  was  so  set  up  ; 
and  the  following  morning  everyone  offered  food  in  his  own 
house  before  the  image  of  Uitzilopochtli,  incensing  also  such 
images  of  the  other  gods  as  he  had,  and  then  went  to  offer 
quails’  blood  before  the  image  set  up  on  the  cu.  The  king 
began,  wringing  off  the  heads  of  four  quails  ; the  priests 
offered  next,  then  all  the  people ; the  whole  multitude 
carrying  clay  fire-pans  and  burning  copal  incense  of  every 
kind,  after  which  everyone  threw  his  live  coals  on  a great 
hearth  in  the  temple  yard.  The  virgins  painted  their  faces, 
put  on  their  heads  garlands  of  parched  maize,  with  strings 
of  the  same  across  their  breasts,  decorated  their  arms  and 
legs  with  red  feathers,  and  carried  black  paper  flags  stuck 
into  split  canes.  The  flags  of  the  daughters  of  the  nobles 
were  not  of  paper,  but  of  a thin  cloth  called  canauac,  painted 

1 Inga  circinalis. 


SACRIFICE  TO  UITZILOPOCHTLI 


101 


with  vertical  black  stripes.  These  girls,  joining  hands, 
danced  round  the  great  hearth,  upon  or  over  which,  on  an 
elevated  place  of  some  kind,  there  danced,  giving  the  time 
and  step,  two  men,  having  each  a kind  of  pine  cage  covered 
with  paper  flags  on  his  shoulders,  the  strap  supporting 
which  passed,  not  across  the  forehead — the  usual  way  for 
men  to  carry  a burden — but  across  the  chest,  as  was  the 
fashion  with  women.  They  bore  shields  of  paper,  crumpled  up 
like  great  flowers,  their  heads  were  adorned  with  white 
feathers,  their  lips  and  part  of  the  face  were  smeared  with 
sugar-cane  juice,  which  produced  a peculiar  effect  over  the 
black  with  which  their  faces  were  always  painted.  They 
carried  in  their  hands  pieces  of  paper  called  amasmaxtli  1 and 
sceptres  of  palm-wood  tipped  with  a black  flower  and  having 
in  the  lower  part  a ball  of  black  feathers.  In  dancing  they 
used  this  sceptre  like  a staff,  and  the  part  by  which  they 
grasped  it  was  wrapped  round  with  a paper  painted  with 
black  lines.  The  music  for  the  dancers  was  supplied  by  a 
party  of  unseen  musicians,  who  occupied  one  of  the  temple 
buildings,  where  they  sat,  he  that  played  the  drum  in  the 
centre,  and  the  performers  on  the  other  instruments  about 
him.  The  men  and  women  danced  on  till  night,  but  the 
strictest  order  and  decency  were  preserved,  and  any  lewd 
word  or  look  brought  down  swift  punishment  from  the 
appointed  overseers. 

This  feast  was  closed  by  the  death  of  a youth  who  had 
been  during  the  past  year  dedicated  to  and  taken  care  of  for 
Uitzilopochtli,  resembling  in  this  the  victim  of  Tezcatlipoca, 
whose  companion  he  had  indeed  been,  but  without  receiving 
such  high  honours.  This  Uitzilopochtli  youth  was  entitled 
Ixteocalli,  * or  Tlacauepan,  or  Teicauhtzin,3  and  was  held  to 
be  the  image  and  representative  of  the  god.  When  the  day 
of  his  death  came  the  priests  decorated  him  with  papers 
painted  over  with  black  circles,  and  put  a mitre  of  eagles’ 
feathers  on  his  head,  in  the  midst  of  whose  plumes  was 
stuck  a flint  knife,  stained  half-way  up  with  blood  and 
adorned  with  red  feathers.  Tied  to  his  shoulders  by  strings 

1 Paper  hand.  1 Face  of  the  temple.  3 Young  brother. 


102 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


passing  across  the  breast  was  a piece  of  very  thin  cloth, 
about  a span  square,  and  over  it  hung  a little  bag.  Over 
one  of  his  arms  was  thrown  a wild  beast's  skin,  arranged 
somewhat  like  a maniple;  bells  of  gold  jingled  at  his  legs  as 
he  walked  or  danced.  There  were  two  peculiar  things 
connected  with  the  death  of  this  youth : first,  he  had  abso- 
lute liberty  of  choice  regarding  the  hour  in  which  he  was 
to  die  ; and,  second,  he  was  not  extended  upon  any  block 
or  altar,  but  when  he  wished  he  threw  himself  into  the  arms 
of  the  priests,  and  had  his  heart  so  cut  out.  His  head  was 
then  hacked  off  and  spitted  alongside  that  of  the  Tezcat- 
lipoca  youth,  of  whom  we  have  spoken  already.  In  this  same 
day  the  priests  made  little  marks  on  children,  cutting  them, 
with  thin  stone  knives,  in  the  breast,  stomach,  wrists,  and 
fleshy  parts  of  the  arms  ; marks,  as  the  Spanish  priests  con- 
sidered, by  which  the  devil  should  know  his  own  sheep. 

Teotleco.  — The  movable  feasts  sacred  to  Tezcatlipoca 
and  alluded  to  in  the  list  of  his  festivals  are  only  briefly 
mentioned  by  Sahagun,  and  do  not  appear  to  have  been  of 
any  particular  importance.  As  regards  the  Teotleco  Sahagun 
says : “ The  twelfth  month  was  called  Teotleco,  which 

signifies  the  arrival  of  the  gods.  A festival  was  celebrated 
in  honour  of  all  the  gods  who  were  said  to  have  gone  to  some 
country,  I know  not  where.  On  the  last  day  of  the  month 
a greater  one  was  held,  because  the  gods  had  returned. 

“ On  the  fifteenth  day  of  this  month  the  young  boys  and 
the  servitors  decked  all  the  altars  or  oratories  of  the  gods 
with  boughs,  as  well  those  which  were  in  the  houses  as  the 
images  which  were  set  up  by  the  wayside  and  at  the  cross- 
roads. This  work  was  paid  for  in  maize.  Some  received  a 
basketful,  and  others  only  a few  ears. 

“ On  the  eighteenth  day  the  ever-youthful  god  Tlamat- 
zincatl,  or  Titlacauan,  arrived.  It  was  said  that  he  marched 
better  and  arrived  the  first  because  he  was  young  and  strong. 
Food  was  offered  him  in  his  temple  on  that  night.  Every- 
one drank,  ate,  and  made  merry  ; the  old  people  especially 
celebrated  the  arrival  of  the  god  by  drinking  wine,  and  it 
was  alleged  that  his  feet  were  washed  by  these  rejoicings. 


MYTHS  OF  TEZCATLIPOCA 


103 


The  last  day  of  the  month  was  marked  by  a great  festival, 
on  account  of  the  belief  that  the  whole  of  the  gods  arrived 
at  that  time.  On  the  preceding  night  a quantity  of  flour 
was  kneaded  on  a carpet  into  the  shape  of  a cheese,  it  being 
supposed  that  the  gods  would  leave  a footprint  thereon  as  a 
sign  of  their  return.  The  chief  attendant  watched  all  night, 
going  to  and  fro  to  see  if  the  impression  appeared.  When 
he  at  last  saw  it  he  called  out,  ‘ The  master  has  arrived,’ 
and  at  once  the  priests  of  the  temple  began  to  sound  the 
horns,  trumpets,  and  other  musical  instruments  used  by 
them.  Upon  hearing  this  noise  everyone  ran  forthwith  to 
offer  food  in  all  the  temples  or  oratories,  and  gave  them- 
selves up  to  renewed  rejoicings,  to  wash  the  feet  of  the  gods, 
as  we  have  already  described. 

“ The  next  day  the  aged  gods  were  said  to  come  last, 
because  they  walked  more  slowly  on  account  of  their  age. 
On  that  day  several  captives  were  doomed  to  be  burnt  alive. 
A great  brazier  was  prepared  ; young  men  disguised  as 
monsters  danced  round  about  it,  and  while  dancing,  hurled 
the  unhappy  victims  into  the  fire,  in  the  manner  already 
explained.  Other  ceremonies  took  place  which  will  be 
described  in  the  account  of  this  festival.” 

MYTHS 

Sahagun  says  of  Tezcatlipoca  that  he  was  invisible  and 
was  able  to  penetrate  into  all  places,  heaven,  earth,  and  hell. 
The  Mexicans,  he  says,  believed  that  he  wandered  over  the 
earth  stirring  up  strife  and  war,  and  setting  men  against  one 
another.  He  also  remarks  that  he  was  the  true  giver  of 
prosperity,  and  extremely  capricious.1 

Acosta  calls  him  the  god  of  drought,  famine,  barrenness, 
and  pestilence.2 

Clavigero  alludes  to  him  as  the  chief  of  the  gods  wor- 
shipped in  Mexico,  the  god  of  providence,  the  soul  of  the 
world,  the  creator  of  heaven  and  earth  and  master  of  all 
things.  “ They  represented  him  as  young,  to  denote  that 
no  length  of  years  ever  diminished  his  power.  They  believed 
1 Hist.  Gen.,  bk.  i,  c.  iii.  3 Hist.  Nat.  y Moral,  c.  ix. 


104 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


that  he  rewarded  with  various  benefits  the  just,  and  punished 
the  wicked  with  diseases  and  other  afflictions.”  1 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  states  that 
“ Tezcatlipoca  is  he  who  appeared  to  the  nation  on  the 
mountain  of  the  mirror,  as  they  say,  and  is  he  who  tempted 
Quetzalcoatl  the  penitent.”  Elsewhere  he  says  : “ They  do 
not  here  paint  Tezcatlipoca  with  a foot  formed  of  a serpent, 
since  they  say  that  this  festival  [panquetzaliztli]  relates  to 
a time  previous  to  his  sinning  while  still  in  heaven,  and  that 
hence  happened  the  war  in  heaven,  from  whence  wars  sprung 
below.” 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A.  says  of  him : 
“ Tezcatlipoca,  here  represented,  was  one  of  their  most 
potent  gods.  They  say  that  he  appeared  in  that  country 
on  the  top  of  a mountain  called  Tezcatepu,  which  signifies 
the  mountain  of  mirrors.”  Later  on  he  remarks  that  the  god 
was  sometimes  painted  with  the  feet  of  a man  and  of  a cock, 
“ as  they  say  his  name  bears  allusion  to  this  circumstance. 
He  is  clothed  with  a fowl,  which  seems  to  cry  in  laughing 
accents,  and  when  it  crows,  Oa,  Oa,  Oa,  they  say  that  it 
deceived  the  first  woman,  who  committed  sin,  and  accordingly 
they  place  him  near  the  goddess  of  pollution.” 

A report  on  the  Huaxtec  territory,  dated  1579,  states  that : 
“ They  relate  another  fable,  that  they  had  two  other  effigies 
as  gods,  one  called  Ometochtli,  who  is  the  god  of  wine,  the 
other  Tezcatlipoca,  which  is  the  name  of  the  most  exalted 
idol  worshipped  by  them,  and  with  these  they  had  painted 
the  figure  of  a woman  named  Hueytonantzin,  that  is  ‘ our 
great  mother,’  because  they  said  that  she  was  the  mother 
of  all  these  gods  or  demons.  And  those  four  above-men- 
tioned male  demons,  they  related,  had  killed  this  great 
mother,  founding  with  her  the  institution  of  human  sacrifice, 
and  taking  her  heart  out  of  her  breast,  and  presenting  it  to 
the  sun.  Similarly,  they  related  that  the  idol  Tezcatlipoca 
had  killed  the  god  of  wine  with  his  consent  and  concurrence, 
giving  out  that  in  this  way  he  gave  eternal  life,  and  that  if  he 
did  not  die,  all  persons  drinking  wine  must  die  ; but  that  the 
1 Hist.  Mex.,  English  translation,  vol.  i,  bk.  vi,  p.  243. 


TEZCATLIPOCA  AS  TOVEYO 


105 


death  of  this  Ometochtli  was  only  the  sleep  of  one  drunk, 
that  he  afterwards  recovered,  and  again  became  fresh  and 
well.” 

Tezcatlipoca,  it  will  be  remembered,  is  alluded  to  in  the 
cosmogonic  myths  of  Mendieta  and  Sahagun,  already 
related  in  the  chapter  on  Cosmogony.  The  Historia  de  los 
Mexicanos  par  sus  Pinturas  refers  to  him  as  the  creator, 
says  that  “ he  made  the  sun  to  shine,”  and  states  that  he 
was  the  constellation  Ursa  Major,  the  Great  Bear,  which 
“ sank  in  the  water.”  He  also  made  the  Tazcaquavlt,  or 
“ tree  of  the  mirror,”  fashioned  four  hundred  men  and  a 
hundred  women  as  food  for  the  sun,  and,  along  with  Quetzal- 
coatl,  constructed  “ the  road  in  the  heavens,  the  Milky 
Way.” 

Sahagun  states  1 that  after  Tezcatlipoca  had  succeeded 
in  driving  Quetzalcoatl  from  the  country,  “ he  proceeded 
further  guilefully  to  kill  many  Toltecs  and  to  ally  himself 
by  marriage  with  Yemac  or  Uemac,  who  was  the  temporal 
lord  of  the  Toltecs,  even  as  Quetzalcoatl  was  the  spiritual 
ruler  of  that  people.  To  accomplish  these  things  Tezcat- 
lipoca took  the  appearance  of  a poor  foreigner  and  presented 
himself  naked,  as  was  the  custom  of  such  people,  in  the 
market-place  of  Tulla,  selling  green  chilli  pepper.  Now  the 
palace  of  Vemac,  the  great  king,  overlooked  the  market- 
place, and  he  had  an  only  daughter,  and  the  girl,  looking 
by  chance  among  the  buyers  and  sellers,  saw  the  disguised 
god.  She  was  smitten  through  with  love  of  him,  and  she 
began  to  sicken.  Vemac  heard  of  her  sickness,  and  he 
inquired  of  the  women  who  guarded  her  as  to  what  ailed  his 
daughter.  They  told  him  as  best  they  could,  how  for  the 
love  of  a peddler  of  pepper,  named  Toveyo,  the  princess  had 
lain  down  to  die.  The  king  immediately  sent  a crier  upon 
the  mountain  Tzatzitepec  to  make  this  proclamation  : ‘ O 
Toltecs,  seek  me  out  Toveyo  that  goes  about  selling  green 
pepper,  let  him  be  brought  before  me.’  So  the  people  sought 
everywhere  for  the  pepper  vendor,  but  he  was  nowhere  to  be 
found.  Then  after  they  could  not  find  him,  he  appeared 
1 Hist.  Gen.,  bk.  iii,  c.  vi-ix. 


106 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


of  his  own  accord  one  day,  at  his  old  place  and  trade  in  the 
market.  He  was  brought  before  the  king,  who  said  to 
him  : ‘ Where  dost  thou  belong  to  ? ’ and  Toveyo  answered, 
‘ I am  a foreigner,  come  here  to  sell  my  green  pepper.’  ‘ Why 
dost  thou  delay  to  cover  thyself  with  breeches  and  a blanket  ? ’ 
said  Vemac.  Toveyo  answered  that  in  his  country  such 
things  were  not  in  the  fashion.  Vemac  continued  : ‘ My 
daughter  longs  after  thee,  not  willing  to  be  comforted  by 
any  Toltec.  She  is  sick  of  love  and  thou  must  heal  her.’ 
But  Toveyo  replied  : ‘ This  thing  can  in  no  wise  be  ; kill 
me  first ; I desire  to  die,  not  being  worthy  to  hear  these 
words,  who  get  my  living  by  selling  green  pepper.’  ‘ I tell 
thee,’  said  the  king,  ‘ that  thou  must  heal  my  daughter  of 
this  her  sickness  ; fear  not.’  Then  they  took  the  cunning 
god  and  washed  him,  and  cut  his  hair,  and  dyed  all  his  body 
and  put  breeches  on  him  and  a blanket ; and  the  king 
Vemac  said,  ‘ Get  thee  in  and  see  my  daughter,  there,  where 
they  guard  her.’  Then  the  young  man  went  in  and  he  re- 
mained with  the  princess  and  she  became  sound  and  well  ; 
thus  Toveyo  became  the  son-in-law  of  the  king  of  Tulla. 

“ Then,  behold,  all  the  Toltecs,  being  filled  with  jealousy 
and  offended,  spake  injurious  and  insulting  words  against 
King  Vemac,  saying  among  themselves,  ‘ Of  all  the  Toltecs 
can  there  not  be  found  a man,  that  this  Vemac  marries  his 
daughter  to  a peddler  ? ’ Now  when  the  king  heard  all 
the  injurious  and  insulting  words  that  the  people  spake  against 
him  he  was  moved,  and  he  spoke  to  the  people  saying, 
‘ Come  hither,  behold  I have  heard  all  these  things  that  ye 
say  against  me  in  the  matter  of  my  son-in-law  Toveyo  ; 
dissimulate  then  ; take  him  deceitfully  with  you  to  the  war 
of  Cacatepec  and  Coatepec,  and  let  the  enemy  kill  him 
there.’  Having  heard  these  words,  the  Toltecs  armed 
themselves,  and  collected  a multitude  and  went  to  the  war, 
bringing  Toveyo  along.  Arrived  where  the  fighting  was  to 
take  place,  they  hid  him  with  the  lame  and  the  dwarfs, 
charging  them,  as  the  custom  was  in  such  cases,  to  watch 
for  the  enemy,  while  the  soldiers  went  on  to  the  attack. 
The  battle  began.  The  Toltecs  at  once  gave  way,  treacher- 


TEZCATLIPOCA  DESTROYS  THE  TOLTECS  107 


ously  and  guilefully  deserting  Toveyo  and  the  cripples. 
Leaving  them  to  be  slaughtered  at  their  post,  they  returned 
to  Tulla  and  told  the  king  how  they  had  left  Toveyo  and  his 
companions  alone  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy.  When  the 
king  heard  the  treason  he  was  glad,  thinking  Toveyo  dead, 
for  he  was  ashamed  of  having  him  for  a son-in-law.  Affairs 
had  gone  otherwise,  however,  with  Toveyo  from  what  the 
plotters  supposed.  On  the  approach  of  the  hostile  army  he 
consoled  his  deformed  companions,  saying  : ‘ Fear  nothing  ; 
the  enemy  come  against  us,  but  I know  that  I shall  kill 
them  all.’  Then  he  rose  up  and  went  forward  against  them, 
against  the  men  of  Coatepec  and  Cacatepec.  He  put  them  to 
flight  and  slew  of  them  without  number.  When  this  came 
to  the  ears  of  Vemac  it  weighed  upon  and  terrified  him 
exceedingly.  He  said  to  his  Toltecs,  ‘ Let  us  now  go  and 
receive  my  son-in-law.’  So  they  all  went  out  with  King 
Vemac  to  receive  Toveyo,  bearing  the  arms  and  devices 
called  quetzalapanecayutl,  and  the  shields  called  i viuhchimali.1 
They  gave  these  things  to  Toveyo,  and  he  and  his  comrades 
received  them  with  dancing  and  the  music  of  flutes,  with 
triumph  and  rejoicing.  Furthermore,  on  reaching  the  palace 
of  the  king,  plumes  were  put  upon  the  heads  of  the  con- 
querors, and  all  the  body  of  each  of  them  was  stained  yellow, 
and  all  the  face  red.  This  was  the  customary  reward  of 
those  that  came  back  victorious  from  war.  And  King 
Vemac  said  to  his  son-in-law  : ‘ I am  now  satisfied  with  what 
thou  hast  done,  and  the  Toltecs  are  satisfied  ; thou  hast 
dealt  very  well  with  our  enemies,  rest  and  take  thine  ease.’ 
But  Toveyo  held  his  peace. 

“ And  after  this,  Toveyo  adorned  all  his  body  with  the  rich 
feathers  called  tocivitl,  and  commanded  the  Toltecs  to  gather 
together  for  a festival,  and  sent  a crier  up  to  the  top  of  the 
mountain  Tzatzitepec,  to  call  in  the  strangers  and  the  people 
afar  off  to  dance  and  to  feast.  A numberless  multitude 
gathered  to  Tulla.  When  they  were  all  gathered,  Toveyo 
led  them  out,  young  men  and  girls,  to  a place  called  Texca- 
lapa,  where  he  himself  began  and  led  the  dancing,  playing 

1 These  both  mean  the  same  thing,  “ shield  of  precious  stones.” 


108 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


on  a drum.  He  sang  too,  singing  each  verse  to  the  dancers, 
who  sang  it  after  him,  though  they  knew  not  the  song 
beforehand.  Then  was  to  be  seen  a marvellous  and  terrible 
thing.  A panic  seized  the  Toltecs.  There  was  a gorge  or 
ravine  there,  with  a river  rushing  through  it  called  the 
Texcaltlauhco.  A stone  bridge  led  over  the  river.  Toveyo 
broke  down  this  bridge  as  the  people  fled.  He  saw  them 
tread  and  crush  each  other  down,  under-foot,  and  over  into 
the  abyss.  They  that  fell  were  turned  into  rocks  and  stones  ; 
as  for  those  that  escaped,  they  did  not  see  nor  think  that  it 
was  Toveyo  and  his  sorceries  had  wrought  this  great  destruc- 
tion ; they  were  blinded  by  the  witchcraft  of  the  god,  and  out 
of  their  senses  like  drunken  men. 

“ Tezcatlipoca  then  proceeded  to  hatch  further  evil  against 
the  Toltecs.  He  took  the  appearance  of  a certain  valiant 
man  called  Teguioa,  and  commanded  a crier  to  summon  all 
the  inhabitants  of  Tulla  and  its  neighbourhood  to  come 
and  help  at  a certain  piece  of  work  in  a certain  flower-garden 
(said  to  have  been  a garden  belonging  to  Quetzalcoatl). 
All  the  people  gathered  to  the  work,  whereupon  the  disguised 
god  fell  upon  them,  knocking  them  on  the  head  with  a hoe. 
Those  that  escaped  the  hoe  were  trodden  down  and  killed 
by  their  fellows  in  attempting  to  escape.  A countless 
number  was  slain.  Every  man  that  had  come  to  the  work 
was  left  lying  dead  among  the  trodden  flowers. 

“ And  after  this  Tezcatlipoca  wrought  another  witch- 
craft against  the  Toltecs.  He  called  himself  Tlacavepan,  or 
Acexcoch,  and  came  and  sat  down  in  the  midst  of  the  market- 
place of  Tulla  having  a little  manikin  (said  to  have  been 
Uitzilopochtli)  dancing  upon  his  hand.  There  was  an 
instant  uproar  of  all  the  buyers  and  sellers  and  a rush  to 
see  the  miracle.  The  people  crushed  and  trod  each  other 
down,  so  that  many  were  killed  there  ; and  all  this  happened 
many  times.  At  last  the  god-sorcerer  cried  out  on  one  such 
occasion  : ‘ What  is  this  ? Do  you  not  see  that  you  are 
befooled  by  us  ? Stone  and  kill  us.’  So  the  people  took 
up  stones  and  killed  the  said  sorcerer  and  his  little  dancing 
manikin.  But  when  the  body  of  the  sorcerer  had  lain  in 


SORCERIES  OF  TEZCATLIPOCA 


109 


the  market-place  for  some  time  it  began  to  stink  and  to 
taint  the  air,  and  the  wind  of  it  poisoned  many.  Then  the 
dead  sorcerer  spake  again,  saying  : ‘ Cast  this  body  outside 
the  town,  for  many  Toltecs  die  because  of  it.’  So  they 
prepared  to  cast  out  the  body,  and  fastened  ropes  thereto 
and  pulled.  But  the  ill-smelling  corpse  was  so  heavy  that 
they  could  not  move  it.  Then  a crier  made  a proclamation, 
saying  : ‘ Come,  all  ye  Toltecs,  and  bring  ropes  with  you, 
that  we  may  drag  out  and  get  rid  of  this  pestilential  carcass.’ 
All  came  accordingly,  bringing  ropes,  and  the  ropes  were 
fastened  to  the  body  and  all  pulled.  It  was  utterly  in  vain. 
Rope  after  rope  broke  with  a sudden  snap,  and  those  that 
dragged  on  a rope  fell  and  were  killed  when  it  broke.  Then 
the  dead  wizard  looked  up  and  said  ; ‘ O Toltecs,  a verse  of 
song  is  needed.’  And  he  himself  gave  them  a verse.  They 
repeated  the  verse  after  him,  and,  singing  it,  pulled  all 
together,  so  that  with  shouts  they  hauled  the  body  out  of  the 
city,  though  still  not  without  many  ropes  breaking  and  many 
persons  being  killed  as  before.  All  this  being  over,  those 
Toltecs  that  remained  unhurt  returned  every  man  to  his  place, 
not  remembering  anything  of  what  had  happened,  for  they 
were  all  as  drunken. 

“ Other  signs  and  wonders  were  wrought  by  Tezcatlipoca 
in  his  role  of  sorcerer.  A white  bird  called  Iztac  cuixtli  was 
clearly  seen  flying  over  Tulla,  transfixed  with  a dart.  At 
night  also,  the  sierra  called  Zacatepec  burned,  and  the  flames 
were  seen  from  afar.  All  the  people  were  stirred  up  and 
affrighted,  saying  one  to  another,  ‘ O Toltecs,  it  is  all  over 
with  us  now  ; the  time  of  the  end  of  Tulla  is  come  ; alas 
for  us,  whither  shall  we  go  ? ’ 

“ Then  Tezcatlipoca  wrought  another  evil  upon  the 
Toltecs  ; he  rained  down  stones  upon  them.  There  fell  also, 
at  the  same  time,  a great  stone  from  heaven  called  Techcatl ; 
and  when  it  fell  the  god-sorcerer  took  the  appearance  of  an 
old  woman,  and  went  about  selling  little  banners  in  a place 
called  Chapultepec  Cuitlapilco,  otherwise  named  Uetzinco. 
Many  then  became  mad  and  bought  of  these  banners  and 
went  to  the  place  where  was  the  stone  Techcatl,  and  there 


110 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


got  themselves  killed  ; and  no  one  was  found  to  say  so  much 
as,  ‘ What  is  this  that  happens  to  us  ? ’ They  were  all  mad. 

“ Another  woe  Tezcatlipoca  brought  upon  the  Toltecs. 
All  their  victuals  suddenly  became  sour,  and  no  one  was 
able  to  eat  of  them.  The  old  woman,  above  mentioned,  took 
up  then  her  abode  in  a place  called  Xochitla,  and  began  to 
roast  maize  : and  the  odour  of  the  roasted  maize  reached  all 
the  cities  round  about.  The  starving  people  set  out  immedi- 
ately, and  with  one  accord,  to  go  where  the  old  woman  was. 
They  reached  her  instantly,  for  here  it  may  be  again  said, 
that  the  Toltecs  were  exceedingly  light  of  foot,  and  arrived 
always  immediately  whithersoever  they  wished  to  go.  As 
for  the  Toltecs  that  gathered  to  the  mock  sorceress,  not  one 
of  them  escaped.  She  killed  them  every  one.” 

These  feats  of  Tezcatlipoca  against  the  Toltecs  seem  to  have 
reference  to  the  various  species  of  charm  wielded  by  the 
enchanter  ; the  love-charm,  the  charm  by  music,  by  disease, 
by  destruction  of  victuals.  The  rain  of  stone  signified  barren- 
ness, drought,  which  was  implied  by  the  nature  of  the  god, 
the  deity  of  obsidian  and  of  tempests. 

For  other  myths  regarding  Tezcatlipoca  see  the  chapter 
on  Cosmogony. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

In  my  opinion  the  early  significance  of  Tezcatlipoca  arises 
out  of  his  connexion  with  obsidian.  This  stone  had  an 
especial  sanctity  for  the  Mexicans,  as  it  provided  the  sacri- 
ficial knives  employed  by  the  priests,  and  we  possess  good 
evidence  that  stone  in  its  fetish  form  was  worshipped  even 
so  late  as  the  eighteenth  century  by  the  Nahuatl-speaking 
Chotas,  who  comprised  it  in  a trinity  with  the  Dawn  and  the 
Serpent.1  From  a passage  in  Acosta  1 we  are  justified  in 
assuming  that  Tezcatlipoca’ s idol  was  of  obsidian,  and,  like 
the  Quiche  god  Tohil,  mentioned  in  the  Popol  Vnh,  he  wore 
sandals  of  obsidian,  as  is  witnessed  by  one  of  his  representa- 
tions in  Codex  Borbonicus,  where  his  footgear  is  painted  with 
the  zigzag  line  of  the  obsidian  snake. 

i Diccionario  Universal,  Appendix,  s.v.  * See  ante,  Aspect  and  Insignia. 


TEZC AT  LIPOCA  AS  OBSIDIAN 


111 


Tezcatlipoca  was  unquestionably  the  god  of  the  itztli 
(obsidian)  stone,  and  Seler  1 * 3 * * * * has  identified  him  with  Iztli, 
the  stone-knife  god,  the  second  of  the  lords  of  the  night. 
In  certain  codices,  too,  he  is  represented  as  having  such  a 
knife  in  place  of  a foot,  and  we  know  that  it  was  a fairly 
common  practice  of  the  Mexican  artists  to  indicate  the  name 
or  race  of  an  individual  by  drawing  one  of  his  feet  in  a 
hieroglyphical  manner.8  I believe,  too,  that  the  net-like 
garment  worn  at  times  by  the  god  above  his  other  attire  is 
an  adaptation  of  the  mesh- bag  in  which  Mexican  hunters 
carried  flints  for  use  as  spear-  and  arrow-heads. 

This,  as  well  as  the  fact  that  he  was  the  god  of  the  sharp- 
cutting  obsidian  from  which  such  weapons  were  made,  caused 
him  to  be  regarded  as  patron  deity  of  the  wild  hunting 
Chichimecs  of  the  northern  steppes,  a connexion  which  is 
eloquent  of  his  erstwhile  primitive  character.  It  is  clear, 
too,  that  Chalchiuhtotolin,  the  jewelled  fowl,  which  is  ruler 
of  the  eighteenth  day-sign,  tecpatl  (obsidian  knife),  is  merely 
a variant  of  Tezcatlipoca.’ 

1 Commentary  C.  Fejervary- Mayer,  p.  34. 

* Soe  the  Stone  of  Tizoc  for  examples  of  this  practice. 

3 This  figure  conventionally  represents  the  turkey  and  strikingly  exhibits 
the  large  red  wattles  and  lobe  of  that  bird.  In  most  of  the  MSS.  it  wears 
Tezcatlipoca’s  smoking  mirror  at  the  temple,  the  warrior’s  headdress  of  heron- 
feathers,  and  in  Codex  Borbonicus  it  appears  as  a naualli  or  disguise  of  the 
god,  having  his  crown  painted  with  stars  and  his  anauatl  or  ring  of  mussel- 
shell.  On  sheet  6 of  Codex  Fejervary -Mayer  the  bird  appears  as  an  image  of 
Tezcatlipoca  and  is  represented  along  with  the  signs  of  mortification  and 
blood-letting,  as  it  is  on  sheet  17  of  the  Aubin  lonalamatl,  where  it  wears 
the  bone-piercer  in  its  ears  and  a red  robe  edged  with  blue  and  brown.  Indeed, 
it  represents  the  blood-offering  connected  with  the  worship  of  Tezcatlipoca. 
The  turkey-cock’s  foot,  too,  is  sometimes  symbolic  of  the  god,  and  the  inter- 
pretative codices  tell  us  that  “ of  the  demons  we  often  see  nothing  more 
than  a cock’s  or  eagle’s  foot.”  The  turkey-cock  is  to  bo  conceived  as  repre- 
sentative of  rain,  which  was  believed  by  the  Nahua  to  be  nothing  else  than 

the  magically  altered  blood  he  shed  in  penitence  or  sacrifice.  It  may  bo  that 
the  red  wattles  and  lobe  of  tho  turkey  suggested  the  idea  of  blood,  and  that 
the  shades  in  his  plumage  were  equally  suggestive  of  water.  Thus  it  would 

come  to  be  regarded  as  tho  blood  shed  by  the  stone  knife  of  sacrifice.  It  is 
also  obvious  that  Tezcatlipoca’s  patronage  of  slaves,  who  were  strictly  re- 

garded as  his  property,  arose  out  of  the  idea  that  those  unfortunates,  whenever 

used  for  the  purposes  of  sacrificial  ritual,  constituted  the  “ food  ” of  the 

obsidian  knife. 


112 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


But  another  important  link  connects  Tezcatlipoca  with 
obsidian.  Bernal  Diaz  states  that  they  called  this  “ Tezcat.” 
From  it  mirrors  were  manufactured  as  divinatory  media 
by  the  wizard.  Sahagun  says  1 that  it  was  known  as 
aitztli  (water  obsidian),  probably  because  of  the  high  polish 
of  which  it  was  capable.  Another  such  stone  he  mentions 
was  called  tepochtli,  which  I would  translate  “ wizard  stone,” 
and  from  which  I think,  by  a process  of  etymological  con- 
fusion, Tezcatlipoca  received  one  of  his  minor  names,  Tel- 
pochtli,  “ the  youth.”  The  name  of  the  god  means  “ Smok- 
ing Mirror,”  and  Acosta 2 says  that  the  Mexicans  called 
Tezcatlipoca’s  mirror  irlaclieaya  (an  obvious  error  for  tlachia- 
loni)  “ his  glass  to  look  in,”  otherwise  the  mirror  or  scrying- 
stone  in  which  he  was  able  to  witness  the  doings  of  mankind. 
It  is  possible  that  the  “ smoke  ” which  was  said  to  rise  from 
this  mirror  symbolized  the  haziness  which  is  supposed  to 
cloud  the  surface  of  a divinatory  glass  prior  to  the  pheno- 
menon of  vision  therein. 

Thus  from  the  shape  beheld  in  the  seer’s  mirror,  Tezcatli- 
poca came  to  be  regarded  as  the  seer.  That  into  which  the 
wizard  gazed  became  so  closely  identified  with  sorcery  as  to 
be  thought  of  as  wizard-like  itself ; for  Tezcatlipoca  is, 
of  all  Mexican  deities,  the  one  most  nearly  connected  with 
the  wizard’s  art.  He  is  par  excellence  the  nocturnal  god  who 
haunts  the  crossways  and  appears  in  a myriad  phantom 
guises  to  the  night-bound  wayfarer.  “ These,”  says  Sahagun, 
“ were  masks  that  Tezcatlipoca  assumed  to  frighten  the 
people.” 

He  wears  the  symbol  of  night  upon  his  forehead  ; he  is 
the  moon,  ruler  of  the  night,  the  wizard  who  veils  himself 
behind  the  clouds  ; he  bears  the  severed  arm  of  a woman 
who  has  died  in  childbed,  as  a magical  instrument,  as  did 
the  naualli  of  old  Mexico.  From  him  all  ominous  and 
uncanny  sounds  proceed : the  howl  of  the  jaguar  (in 

which  we  perceive  Tezcatlipoca  as  the  wizard  metamor- 

1 Bk.  xi,  c.  8,  § 5. 

a Bernal  Diaz  also  states  that  the  eyes  of  Tezcatlipoca’s  idol  were  “ mirrors.” 
See  ante,  “ Aspect  and  Insignia.” 


TEZCATLIPOCA  AS  WIND-GOD 


113 


phosed  into  the  wer-animal),  and  the  foreboding  cry  of  the 
uactli  bird,  the  voc,  the  bird  of  Ilurakan  in  the  Popol 
Vuh. 

Tezcatlipoca  was  undoubtedly  connected  with  the  wind, 
and  this  leads  me  to  suspect  that  in  the  course  of  his  evolution 
he  came  to  be  thought  of  as  among  that  class  of  magical 
stones  which  in  some  mysterious  manner  is  considered 
capable  of  raising  a tempest  under  the  spell  of  the  sorcerer.1 
Of  such  a belief  world-wide  examples  exist.  In  the  Irish 
island  of  Fladdahuan  such  a stone  was  anointed  when  the 
fisher  desired  a wind  2 and  was  kept  in  wool  wrappings.  A 
piece  of  pumice-stone  drifted  to  Puka-Puka,  says  Lang,5  and 
was  regarded  as  a god  of  winds  and  waves,  to  which  offerings 
were  made  during  hurricanes.  Tezcatlipoca  is  none  other 
than  the  original  “ hurricane,”  for  he  has  been  identified 
with  the  Hurakan  of  the  Quiches  of  Guatemala  alluded  to 
in  the  Popol  Vuh,  from  whose  name  the  meteorological  ex- 
pression has  been  borrowed. 

Whether  or  not  he  came  to  be  looked  upon  as  the  wind 
of  night  which  ravined  through  the  empty  streets  and 
deserted  countryside  by  virtue  of  the  train  of  thought  sug- 
gested above,  many  aspects  of  Tezcatlipoca  are  eloquent  of 
his  boreal  attributes.  Thus,  he  is  invisible  and  capricious, 
the  object  of  mistrust  among  the  people,  who  discerned  in 
tempestuous  weather  a manifestation  of  his  freakish  bad 
temper.  The  myth  in  which  he  was  described  as  pursuing 
Quetzalcoatl  in  tiger-form  will,  in  the  section  which  deals 
with  that  god,  be  indicated  as  an  allegory  of  the  clashing  of 
the  hurricane  with  the  rain-bringing  trade-wind.  Lastly, 
as  patron  of  war,  of  the  warrior’s  club  and  dance-house,  he 
is,  as  the  boisterous  storm,  emblematic  of  strife  and  discord. 
Seats  of  stone  over-arched  with  green  branches  were  pro- 
vided for  him  throughout  the  city  so  that  he  might  rest 
from  his  wanderings  if  he  thought  good. 

1 In  the  myth  which  recounts  his  discomfiture  of  the  Toltecs  it  will  be 
recalled  that  he  rained  stones  upon  them.  See  also  Introduction  for  identi- 
fication of  obsidian  with  wind  and  breath. 

J Gomme,  Ethnology  in  Folklore. 

* Myth,  Ritual,  and  Religion,  vol.  i,  p.  266. 

8 


114 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


In  the  Aztec  mind  stone  was  symbolic  of  sin.  Thus 
Tezcatlipoca  in  his  variant,  Itzlacoliuhqui,  is  the  just  avenger, 
who  punishes  evil  swiftly  and  terribly,  for  obsidian  as  the 
sacrificial  knife  was  the  instrument  of  justice.1  The  coldness 
of  stone,  its  hardness  and  dryness,  seem  also  to  have  given 
rise  to  the  conception  of  him  as  god  of  the  Toxcatl  festival  in 
the  filth  month  of  the  year,  the  dry  season,  when  the  sun 
stood  at  the  zenith  above  Tenochtitlan.  Thus,  as  the 
prayers  to  him  eloquently  affirm,  he  was  the  god  of  drought, 
of  sereness,  and  barrenness. 

In  common  with  the  majority  of  the  greater  Mexican 
deities,  Tezcatlipoca  had  a stellar  connexion.  He  was  one 
of  the  Tzitzimime  who  had  fallen  from  heaven,  and  the 
Ilistoria  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas  remarks  of  him, 
“ the  constellation  of  the  Great  Bear  descends  to  the  water 
because  it  is  Tezcatlipoca,  who  has  his  seat  there,”  thus 
also  indicating  that  he  ruled  the  northern  quarter,  out  of 
which,  it  was  considered,  no  good  thing  might  come.  His 
Tzitzimime  shape  appears  to  have  been  the  spider.  In 
American-Indian  myth  the  stars  are  frequently  regarded  as 
having  spider  form,  and  especially  so  in  Mexican  myth.  In 
several  of  the  codices,  notably  in  Codex  Borbonicus,  the 
Tzitzimime  or  star-demons  are  represented  in  insect  shape. 
Thus,  Tezcatlipoca,  when  he  descended  from  heaven  to 
harass  Quetzalcoatl,  did  so  by  means  of  a spider’s  web,  so 
that  we  are  justified  in  regarding  the  spider  as  his  stellar 
form. 

The  origin  of  his  conception  as  the  sun  of  the  north  and 
as  the  setting  sun  seems  reasonably  clear  and  is  secondary 
in  character.  As  the  sun  sinks  in  the  west  its  brilliant  gold 
turns  to  a glassy  red,  reminiscent  of  the  dull  reflex  of  light 
in  a surface  of  polished  obsidian.  The  mirror  held  by 
Tezcatlipoca,  with  its  fringe  ol  leathers,  obviously  represents 
the  sun  of  evening.  But  he  is  also  to  be  thought  of  as  the 
torrid  and  blazing  orb  of  the  dry  season,  scorching  and 
merciless. 

I regard  his  several  coloured  forms  as  symbolic  of  various 

1 See  Itzlacoliuhqui,  pp.  341  ff. 


WIND  AND  SPIRIT 


115 


kinds  of  weather.  Thus,  in  his  black  form  he  appears  to 
represent  the  rainy  season ; in  his  red,  the  torrid  and  dry 
period  of  the  year ; in  his  white,  cold  and  frost ; and  in  his 
striped  painting,  the  embodiment  of  fair  weather.  Thus 
Tezcatlipoca  is  the  atmospheric  god  par  excellence,  ruler  of 
all  meteorological  conditions.  In  the  prayers  offered  up  to 
him  it  is  frequently  stated  that  he  may,  if  he  so  chooses, 
send  rain  and  plenty,  and  this  aspect  of  him  seems  to  account 
for  his  variously  coloured  disguises.  That  these  were, 
indeed,  regarded  as  practically  separate  divine  forms  is 
clear  from  the  first  chapter  of  the  Hisloria  de  los  Mexicanos 
por  sus  Pinturas,  which  alludes  to  the  Black  and  Red 
Tezcatlipoca  as  two  entirely  different  gods. 

Tezcatlipoca,  at  the  period  of  the  Conquest,  had  developed 
attributes  of  a more  lofty  kind  than  any  of  those  already 
described.  Like  Quetzalcoatl,  and  because  he  was  a god  of 
the  wind  or  atmosphere,  he  came  to  be  regarded  as  the 
personification  of  the  breath  of  life.  In  the  mind  of  savage 
man  the  wind  is  usually  the  giver  of  breath,  the  great 
store-house  of  respiration,  the  source  of  immediate  life. 
In  many  mythologies  the  name  of  the  principal  deity  is 
synonymous  with  that  for  wind,  and  in  others  the  words 
“soul”  and  “breath”  have  a common  origin.  It  has 
been  suggested  that  the  Hebrew  Jahveh  (the  archaic 
form  of  Jehovah)  is  connected  with  the  Arabic  hawah,  to 
blow  or  breathe,  and  that  Jahveh  was  originally  a wind  or 
tempest  god. 

Our  word  “spiritual”  is  derived  from  the  Latin  spirare, 
to  blow  ; the  Latin  animus,  “ spirit,”  is  the  same  word  as 
the  Greek  anemos,  “ wind,”  and  psuklie  has  a similar  origin. 
All  are  directly  evolved  from  verbal  roots  expressing  the 
motion  of  the  wind  or  the  breath.  The  Hebrew  word  ruah 
is  equivalent  to  both  “ wind  ” and  “ spirit,”  as  is  the 
Egyptian  kncph.  If  we  turn  to  the  American  mythologies, 
nija  in  the  language  of  the  Dakota  means  “ breath,”  or 
“ life  ” ; in  Netela  piuts  is  “ life,”  “ breath,”  and  “ soul  ” ; 
the  Yakuna  language  of  Oregon  has  wkrisha,  “ wind,”  wkrish- 
mit,  “ life.”  The  Creeks  applied  to  their  supreme  deity  the 


116 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


name  Esaugetuh  Emissee,  Master  of  Breath,1  and  the  original 
name  for  God  in  Choctaw  was  Hustoli,  the  Storm  Wind. 
“ In  the  identity  of  wind  with  breath,  of  breath  with  life, 
of  life  with  soul,  of  soul  with  God,  lies  the  far  deeper  and 
truer  reason,”  says  Brinton,  “ of  the  prominence  given  to 
wind-gods  in  many  mythologies.”  8 

But  although  Tezcatlipoca  was  the  Giver  of  Life,  he  was 
also  regarded  as  a deity  with  power  to  take  it  away.  In 
fact  at  times  he  appeared  as  an  inexorable  death-dealer,  and 
in  this  guise  he  was  named  Nezahualpilli  (“  The  Hungry 
Chief”)  and  Yaotzin  (“The  Enemy”).  But  he  was  also 
known  as  Telpochtli  (“  The  Youthful  Warrior  ”),  from  the 
fact  that  his  reserve  of  strength,  his  vital  force,  never  grew 
less  and  was  boisterously  apparent,  as  in  the  tempest.  As 
the  wind  at  night  rushes  through  the  roads  with  more  seeming 
violence  than  it  does  by  day,  so  was  Tezcatlipoca  pictured 
in  the  Aztec  consciousness  as  rioting  along  the  highways  in 
search  of  slaughter.  Indeed,  seats  or  benches  of  stone, 
shaped  like  those  used  by  the  chiefs  of  the  Mexican  towns, 
were  placed  at  intervals  on  the  roads  for  his  use,  and  here 
he  was  supposed  to  lurk,  concealed  by  the  green  boughs 
which  surrounded  them,  in  wait  for  his  victims.  Should 
anyone  grapple  with  and  overcome  him,  he  might  crave 
whatsoever  boon  he  desired,  with  the  surety  of  its  being 
granted.  The  worship  of  Tezcatlipoca  previous  to  the 
Conquest  had  so  advanced,  and  so  powerful  had  his  cult 
become,  that  it  would  appear  as  if  the  movement  would 
ultimately  have  led  to  a monotheism  or  worship  of  one  god 
equivalent  to  that  of  the  cult  of  Jahveh,  the  God  of  the  Old 
Testament  among  the  ancient  Hebrews.  To  his  priestly 
caste  is  credited  the  invention  of  many  of  the  usages  of 
civilized  life,  and  it  succeeded  in  making  his  worship 
universal.  The  Nahua  people  regarded  the  other  gods  as 
objects  of  special  devotion,  but  the  worship  of  Tezcatlipoca 
was  general. 

1 See  my  article  on  “ Cherokee  Religion  ” in  vol.  iii.  Encyclopedia  of  Religion 
and  Ethics. 

* Brinton,  Myths  of  the  New  World. 


QUETZALCOATL 


117 


QUETZALCOATL  = “ FEATHERED  SERPENT  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : The  Plateau  of  Anahuac. 

Minor  Names  : 

Chicunaui  eecatl — “ Nine  Wind.” 

Ce  acatl — •“  One  Reed.” 

Relationship  : Son  of  Iztacmixcoatl  and  Chimalman  or  Xochiquetzal  ; 

one  of  the  Tzitzimime. 

Calendar  Place  : 

Ruler  of  the  second  day-count,  eecatl. 

Ruler  of  the  second  week,  ce  ocelotl. 

Ninth  of  the  thirteen  day-lords. 

Festivals  : 

Ce  acatl  (movable  feast). 

Atlacahualco . 

Compass  Direction  : East. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

General. — The  insignia  of  Quetzalcoatl  is  fairly  constant 
in  its  appearance.  He  usually  wears  the  Huaxtec  cone- 
shaped  hat  painted  in  the  design  of  the  jaguar-skin,  which  is 
occasionally  divided  vertically  into  a black  or  blue  and  a 
red  field,  having  an  eye  in  the  middle.  The  hair  is  bound  by 
a leather  strap  set  with  jewels,  which  has  a conventional 
bird’s  head  on  the  front,  and  in  Codex  Borgia  consistently 
shows  a black,  stepped  pattern  on  a white  ground.  Else- 
where a bow  with  rounded  ends  takes  the  place  of  this  strap, 
but  in  Borgia  (sheet  62)  the  hair  is  bound  up  with  two  inter- 
twined snakes.  At  the  back  of  the  neck  a fan-shaped  nape- 
ornament  is  usually  seen,  consisting  of  black  feathers,  from 
which  rise  the  red  plumes  of  the  quetzal  bird,  and  it  seems, 
from  the  account  of  the  costume  sent  to  Cortez  by  Motecu- 
hzoma,  that  this  nape-appendage  was  made  from  grouse- 
feathers,  although  the  Spanish  account  states  that  they 
belonged  to  the  crow.  The  god  usually  wears  white  ear- 
pendants  of  hook-like  shape,  which,  Sahagun  states,  were 
made  of  gold.  The  necklace  is  of  spirally  voluted  snail- 
shells,  and  on  the  breast  is  wrorn  a large  ornament,  also  sliced 
from  a shell.  The  ends  of  the  loin-cloth  are  rounded  off 
and  are  generally  painted  in  twro  colours — brown,  the  colour 


118 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


of  the  jaguar-skin,  and  white  or  red.  The  god’s  atlail,  or 
spear-thrower,  is  painted  with  the  stellar  design  of  white 
circles  on  a black  ground,  and  in  his  headdress  is  stuck  the 
agave- leaf  spike  and  the  bone  dagger,  the  implements  of 
penance  and  mortification.  The  body-paint  is  frequently 
black,  like  that  of  the  priests.  Most  of  these  insignia  are  of 
Huaxtec  origin  and  show  that  Quetzalcoatl  was  usually 
associated  with  this  coastal  people.  The  snail-shell  ornament 
on  the  breast,  the  hook-shaped  ear-pendant,  the  fan-shaped 
nape-ornament,  and  the  cone-shaped  cap,  were  undoubtedly 
of  Huaxtec  origin,  and  such  objects  have  been  taken  from 
Huaxtec  graves  and  are  found  represented  on  vases  and 
jugs  from  the  State  of  Hidalgo.  In  many  representations 
of  him  the  god  is  seen  wearing  a long-snouted  mask,  usually 
painted  a bright  red,  through  which  he  was  supposed  to 
expel  the  wind  in  his  guise  of  Eecatl,  the  Wind-god.  This 
mask  is  frequently  fringed  with  a beard. 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  75  : Quetzalcoatl’s  body-paint 
is  a dark  colour,  and  in  his  hair  he  wears  unspun  cotton,  as 
does  Tlazolteotl.  Sheet  76  : Here  his  face  is  painted  black 
and  he  wears  the  fillet  with  the  step-pattern  and  the  two- 
coloured  cap,  and  in  his  hair  are  stuck  the  instruments  of 
mortification.  He  holds  in  his  hand  a snake,  which  is  to 
be  regarded  as  the  agricultural  implement  with  which  he 
tills  the  ground. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  73  : In  this  place  he  is  set  back 
to  back  with  the  Death-god  and  is  surrounded  by  the  twenty 
day-signs.  The  body-paint  is  light  blue,  and  the  anterior 
part  of  the  face  has  the  stellar  painting  of  white  circles  on  a 
black  ground.  His  conical  cap  has  the  parti-coloured 
painting  and  the  cross,  the  symbol  of  the  four  winds,  in  the 
middle.  On  his  breast  he  wfears  the  snail-shell  and  in  his 
hand  a blue  staff.  His  wind-mask  is  entirely  covered  with 
stellar  and  lunar  emblems.  His  rattle-staff  is  light  blue, 
in  contradistinction  to  that  of  the  Death-god,  which  is 
sprinkled  with  blood.  Sheet  56  : Here  he  is  equipped  with 
the  hoe  and  wears  the  body-paint  of  a priest,  a necklace 
of  jaguar-skin  and  teeth,  the  conical  bi-coloured  cap,  the 


FORMS  OF  QUETZALCOATL. 


o ° ° o 


mmm 

ill 

Quetzalcoatl  (right)  and  the  Death-god.  (Codex  Vaticanus,  3773,  sheet  76.) 
FORMS  OF  QUETZALCOATL. 


[119 


QUETZALCOATL’S  VARIANTS 


119 


stepped  fillet  with  conventional  bird’s  head  in  front,  and 
the  bearded  face-mask.  Stellar  symbols  and  feather-balls 
dot  his  dress  and  headdress.  He  stands  back  to  back  with 
the  Death-god,  and  it  is  clear  that  here  he  is  intended  to 
represent  the  heavenly  Quetzalcoatl,  the  giver  of  breath 
and  life.  On  sheet  72  we  see  him  as  a priest  surrounded 
by  day-signs  and  implements  of  mortification.  Sheet  19  : 
As  represented  in  this  sheet  he  stands  opposite  the  Death- 
god.  He  wears  a dark-coloured  garment,  and  what  can  be 
seen  of  his  face  is  painted  black,  with  a spiral  pattern.  His 
mantle  bears  the  cross- hatchings  indicative  of  rain  or  water 
and  is  ornamented  with  feather  balls.  The  red  wind-mask 
protrudes  beneath  a parti-coloured  cap  with  stellar  eyes, 
and  a fillet  with  step-pattern  and  conventional  bird’s  head, 
and  he  wears  the  snail-shell  breast  ornament  and  carries 
the  implements  of  mortification.  Sheet  16  : On  the  lower 
right-hand  corner  of  this  sheet  he  is  depicted  in  a precisely 
similar  manner. 

QuetzalcoatV s Dress  sent  to  C ortiz. — When  Cortez  landed 
at  Vera  Cruz,  Motecuhzoma,  believing  him  to  be  the  god 
Quetzalcoatl  returned,  sent  him  “ the  dress  that  was  appro- 
priate to  him.”  1 This  consisted  of  four  costumes,  that  of 
Quetzalcoatl  proper,  and  those  of  Tezcatlipoca,  Tlaloc,  and 
Xiuhtecutli,  the  Fire-god,  who  were  regarded  as  the  four 
deities  dominant  in  the  four  quarters  of  the  heavens,  and 
had  in  the  higher  theology  become  fused  in  the  conception 
of  Quetzalcoatl,  or  were  regarded  as  variants  of  him.  The 
Quetzalcoatl  dress  proper  is  said  by  Sahagun  to  have  con- 
sisted of  the  turquoise  snake-mask,  now  to  be  seen  in  the 
British  Museum,  and  which  can  be  easily  identified  by  the 
folds  of  the  snake’s  body  forming  the  eyebrows,  the  quetzal- 
feather  adornment,  and  the  turquoise  throwing-stick,  shaped 
in  the  form  of  a snake.  It  seems  probable,  however,  that 
this  dress,  although  it  is  described  as  that  of  Quetzalcoatl, 
was  that  associated  with  the  Fire-god. 

Codex  Magliabecchiano. — Sheet  89  : Quetzalcoatl  is  here 
represented  in  a dancing  attitude.  He  wears  the  Huaxtec 

1 Sahagun,  bk,  xii,c.  iv. 


120 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


hat  made  of  jaguar-skin,  the  shield  with  the  snail-shell 
ornament,  which  is  also  reproduced  on  his  breast,  and  the 
yellow  and  red  face-painting.  The  bone  “ reed  ” for  piercing 
the  tongue  is  stuck  in  his  headgear,  and  from  it  depend  balls 
of  cotton.  He  carries  an  atlatl,  or  spear-thrower,  symbolic 
of  rain  or  wind,  and  similar  in  motif  to  the  nose-ornament  of 
the  Maya  God  B.  His  mantle  is  cross-hatched  to  symbolize 
rain  or  water  and  is  decorated  with  red  bows.  He  wears 
anklets  of  jaguar-skin,  and  a panache  of  green  and  yellow 
feathers. 

Sahagun  MS.  (Biblioteca  del  Palacio). — In  the  illustration 
which  accompanies  his  description  in  this  MS.  he  wears  a 
pointed  cap  of  jaguar-skin,  surmounted  by  quetzal- plumes. 
The  face  and  body  are  painted  black  with  soot,  and  a curved 
band  falls  from  beneath  the  hat  to  the  neck.  He  wears  the 
golden  “ water-snake  ” collar,  and  on  his  back  the  wing  of 
the  red  guacamayo.  Over  the  hips  is  slung  a cloth  with  a red 
border.  He  wears  white  sandals,  and  pieces  of  jaguar-skin 
are  fastened  over  the  foot.  On  his  shield  he  has  the  shell 
which  is  typical  of  him,  and  in  his  hand  a staff  with  a motif 
like  that  of  the  nose  of  the  Maya  God  B.  Sahagun  says  of 
him  : “ His  image  was  always  in  a recumbent  position  and 
covered  with  blankets.  The  face  of  it  was  very  ugly,  the 
head  large  and  furnished  with  a long  beard.”  1 

Torquemada  states  that  Quetzalcoatl  was  a white  man, 
large-bodied,  broad-browed,  great-eyed,  with  long  black  hair 
and  a beard  heavy  and  rounded.* 

Acosta  says  of  Quetzalcoatl’s  image  at  Cholula  : “ They 
called  it  Quetzallcoalt.  This  idoll  was  in  a great  place  in  a 
temple  very  high.  It  had  about  it  gold,  silver,  jewels,  very 
rich  feathers,  and  habits  of  divers  colours.  It  had  the 
forme  of  a man,  but  the  visage  of  a little  bird  with  a red  bill, 
and  above  a combe  full  of  warts,  having  ranks  of  teeth  and 
the  tongue  hanging  out.  It  carried  upon  the  head  a pointed 
myter  of  painted  paper,  a sithe  in  the  hand,  and  many 
toyes  of  gold  on  the  legs,  with  a thousand  other  foolish 
inventions,  whereof  all  had  their  significations.”  * 

1 Bk.  iii,  c.  ii,  * Bk.  xi,  c.  xlvii.  3 Bk.  v,  c.  ix. 


Quetzalcoatl. 


120] 


(From  the  Sahagun  MS.) 


FORMS  OF  QUETZALCOATL. 


TON  ACATECUTL I -TON  ACACI U ATL. 
(From  Codex  Borgia.) 


STATUES  OF  QUETZALCOATL 


121 


Elsewhere  Acosta  says  : “ The  greatest  idoll  of  all  their 
gods  was  called  Quezcalcovately.  . . . He  never  ware  but 
one  garment  of  cotton,  which  was  white,  narrow  and  long, 
and  upon  that  a mantle  beset  with  certain  red  crosses.  They 
have  certain  green  stones  which  were  his,  and  those  they 
keep  for  relickes.  One  of  them  is  like  an  ape’s  head.” 

Anales  de  Quauhtitlan. — In  this  work  Quetzalcoatl  is 
described  as  wearing  the  turquoise  snake-mask  and  the 
quetzal- feather  ornament — that  is,  the  decorations  of  the 
Fire-god  : “ Lastly  in  the  year  one  reed  they  say,  when  he 
had  arrived  on  the  shore  of  the  sea,  then  he  began  to  weep 
and  put  off  the  garb  with  which  he  was  arrayed,  his  quetzal- 
feather  ornament,  his  turquoise  mask.” 

STATUARY 

A statuette  of  the  god  from  the  Valley  of  Mexico  exhibits 
him  in  a high  cap,  ornamented  round  the  lower  portion  with 
a serpentine  motif,  and  wearing  the  sliced  snail-shell  dress- 
ornament.  A caryatid  found  in  the  Calle  de  las  Escalerillas, 
Mexico  City,  on  the  16th  of  October  1900,  represents  him 
with  a long,  pointed  beard,  which  might,  however,  be  inter- 
preted as  the  mouth-mask  of  the  Wind-god  lowered  down  to 
show  the  upper  part  of  the  face  more  clearly,  and  it  would 
seem  from  this  statue  that  the  beard  with  which  Quetzalcoatl 
is  represented  in  some  places  in  Mexican  art  is  nothing  more 
or  less  than  the  mouth-mask  pushed  down  over  the  chin 
and  neck,  although  it  must  be  admitted  that  his  mask  is 
frequently  depicted  with  what  is  undoubtedly  a beard. 
A relief  excavated  at  the  Castillo  de  Teayo  shows  Quetzalcoatl 
wearing  the  feathered-serpent  helmet-mask,  which  in  this 
representation  is  most  elaborate,  and  the  sliced  snail-shell 
dress-ornament.  Two  figures  of  Quetzalcoatl  found  near 
Texcuco  exhibit  considerable  differentiation  from  other 
forms.  In  both  he  is  seated  on  the  top  of  a teocalli  or  temple, 
and  behind  him  is  seen  the  solar  emblem,  represented  as  a 
large,  flaming  disc.  He  wears  a high  cap  which  reminds  one 
of  the  crown  of  Upper  Egypt,  as  seen  in  Egyptian  representa- 
tions, except  that  it  is  flanked  on  either  side  by  two  large 


122 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


studs  or  knobs  and  is  surrounded  at  the  base  by  the  serpent- 
motif,  as  in  the  specimen  from  the  Valley  of  Mexico.  He 
also  wears  his  usual  breast-ornament.  In  a round  sculpture 
found  at  Puebla  we  perhaps  see  Quetzalcoatl  as  a butterfly, 
and  can  only  identify  this  figure  as  the  god  because  of  the 
wind-mask  it  wears. 


WALL-PAINTINGS 

In  several  of  the  wall-paintings  at  Mitla,  and  especially 
in  those  on  the  north  side  of  Palace  I,  Quetzalcoatl  is  depicted 
as  wearing  the  insignia  usually  connected  with  him  in  Mexico. 
In  one  of  these  he  wears  the  Huaxtec  cap  with  jaguar-skin 
markings,  having  the  sacrificial  implements  stuck  in  it,  and 
the  wind-mouth  mask,  with  beard.  The  snail-shell  ornament 
adorns  his  shield.  In  another  the  facial  insignia  is  less 
easily  seen,  but  the  large  nape-fan  with  which  he  is  frequently 
adorned  is  well  depicted.  Immediately  behind  this  is  a 
figure,  which,  though  partially  destroyed,  is  still  interesting 
because  of  its  high  degree  of  conventionality.  We  have 
here  the  cap  and  panache  of  Quetzalcoatl,  together  with  the 
strip  running  from  brow  to  eye  and  from  eye  to  jaw,  which 
is  part  of  the  face-painting  of  the  Moon-god.  Moreover, 
in  the  corner  we  have  the  symbol  of  the  moon,  a pot- 
shaped bone,  so  that  here,  I think,  we  have  a symbol  of 
Quetzalcoatl  as  the  Moon-god.  In  the  preceding  figure, 
too,  we  have  also  the  lunar  emblem,  in  this  place  in  shape 
like  the  nose-plug  of  the  octli-g ods,  but  containing  the  stellar 
eye,  and  flanked  by  balls  of  feather-down.  It  would  thus 
seem  that  the  symbol  has  some  reference  to  Quetzalcoatl  in 
his  variant  of  the  planet  Venus.  Moreover  the  eye  appears 
as  gouged  out.  This  eye-gouging  is  seen  in  the  Maya  Books 
of  Chilan  Balam,  in  the  case  of  the  god  Itzamna.  These 
two  latter  paintings,  Seler  thinks,  are  symbolic  of  the  Uiyatao, 
or  the  high-priests  of  Mitla,  who  were  regarded  as  incarnations 
of  Quetzalcoatl.1 

1 Seler,  The  Wall-paintings  of  Mitla,  Bull.  28,  Bureau  of  American 
Ethnology. 


MYTHS  OF  QUETZALCOATL 


123 


MYTHS 

The  myths  concerning  Quetzalcoatl  are  numerous  and 
conflicting.  In  the  first  place  I shall  provide  a careful 
precis  of  the  more  important,  their  prolixity  rendering  full 
quotation  impossible. 

Sahagun’s  account  of  Quetzalcoatl  may  be  summarized 
as  follows  : The  arts  had  their  inception  with  Quetzalcoatl. 
His  houses  were  made  of  chalchiuites,  silver,  white,  and  red 
shells,  and  rich  feathers.  His  folk  were  nimble  and  swift  in 
passage  from  one  place  to  another,  and  were  called  tlanquace- 
milhiyme.1  He  gave  his  commands  to  the  people  for  a 
hundred  leagues  round  by  means  of  a crier  stationed  on  the 
mountain  Tzotzitepetl.®  He  had  wealth  in  abundance, 
provision  in  plenty,  and  in  his  time  maize  was  so  large  in 
the  head  that  a man  might  not  carry  more  than  one  stalk  in 
his  clasped  arms.  Pumpkins  were  in  circumference  as  great 
as  a man  is  high,  and  the  stalks  of  the  wild  amaranth  grew 
like  trees.  Cotton  grew  in  all  colours — red,  scarlet,  yellow, 
violet,  white,  green,  blue,  black,  grey,  orange,  and  tawny. 
In  the  city  of  Tollan,  where  Quetzalcoatl  dwelt,  were  many 
birds  of  rich  plumage  and  sweet  song.  The  servants  of 
Quetzalcoatl  were  wealthy  and  had  abundance  of  all  things, 
and  food  was  plentiful  with  them.  Their  master  did  penance 
by  pricking  his  legs  and  drawing  blood  with  the  spines  of 
the  maguey  and  by  washing  at  midnight  in  a fountain.  But 
sorcerers  came  against  Quetzalcoatl  and  his  people,  the 
Toltecs,  and  these,  we  are  told,  were  the  gods  Tezcatlipoca, 
Uitzilopochtli,  and  Tlacuepan.  Tezcatlipoca  visited  the  house 
of  Quetzalcoatl  in  the  guise  of  an  old  man,  but  was  told  that 
he  was  sick,  and  was  at  first  refused  entrance.  Later,  how- 
ever, he  was  admitted,  Quetzalcoatl  observing  that  he  had 
waited  for  him  for  many  days.  Tezcatlipoca  then  produced 
a draught  of  medicine  which,  he  assured  the  sick  king,  would 
intoxicate  him,  ease  his  heart,  and  carry  his  thoughts  away 
from  the  trials  and  fatigues  of  death  and  departure.5  This 

1 “ The  swift  ones  who  serrate  the  teeth.”  2 “ Mount  of  the  crier.” 

3 Sahagun’s  statement  that  the  draught  would  make  Quetzalcoatl  remember 
those  evils  is  obviously  a slip  which  even  his  copyist  Torquemada  is  capable 
of  avoiding. 


124 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


latter  phrase  roused  Quetzalcoatl  to  ask  where  he  must  go, 
for  that  he  had  a premonition  of  departure  seems  clear.  “ To 
Tollantlapallan,”  replied  Tezcatlipoca,  “ where  another  old 
man  awaits  thee.  He  and  you  shall  speak  together,  and  on 
thy  return  thou  shalt  be  as  a youth,  yea  as  a boy.”  With 
little  goodwill  Quetzalcoatl  quaffed  the  medicine,  and  having 
once  tasted  of  it  he  drank  more  deeply,  so  that  at  last  he 
became  intoxicated  and  maudlin.  That  which  he  had  drunk 
was  the  wine  made  from  the  maguey- plant,  called  teoncetl 
(“drink  of  the  gods”).  And  so  great  a longing  to  depart 
came  upon  him  that  at  length  he  arose  and  went  from 
Tollan.1 * *  Eire  departing,  Quetzalcoatl  burned  his  houses 
of  shells  and  silver  and  buried  many  precious  things  in  the 
mountains  and  ravines.  He  turned  the  cocoa-trees  into 
mezquites  and  dispatched  all  the  birds  of  brilliant  plumage 
in  Anahuac,  three  hundred  miles  away.  On  his  journey  to 
the  coast  he  came  to  the  hill  Quauhtitlan,  where  he  found  a 
great  tree,  under  which  he  rested.  Gazing  into  a mirror,  as 
he  reclined  under  its  shade,  he  said,  “ I am  very  old,”  named 
the  place  Ueuequauhtitlan  after  his  saying,5  and  stoned  the 
tree.  The  stones  he  cast  at  it  sank  into  its  trunk,  and  were 
to  be  seen  remaining  there  for  long  afterwards.  Preceded 
by  flute-players,  he  recommenced  his  journey,  but  once  more 
became  weary,  and  rested  on  a stone  by  the  wayside. 
Looking  towards  Tollan,  he  wept,  and  his  tears  pitted  the 
stone  on  which  he  sat,  and  the  imprints  of  his  hands  and 
thighs  also  remained  thereon.  That  place  he  called  Temac- 
palco.  Reaching  a great  river,  he  halted  until  a stone  bridge 
was  built  over  it,  and  having  crossed,  he  called  the  place 
Tepanaoya.  Certain  sorcerers  now  met  him,  and  asked  him 
whither  he  was  bound,  why  he  had  left  his  city  of  Tollan,  and 
who  would  now  do  penance  there.  Quetzalcoatl  replied  that 
he  must  go,  that  he  was  called  to  Tlapallan  by  the  Sun. 
The  sorcerers  requested  him  to  leave  behind  his  knowledge 
of  the  mechanical  arts,  the  smelting  of  silver,  the  working 

1 Bk.  iii,  c.  3 and  4. 

3 The  names  throughout  the  myth  merely  describe  the  incident  which  took 

place  at  the  locality  alluded  to. 


THE  DEEDS  OF  QUETZALCOATL 


125 


of  precious  stones,  and  masonry,  painting,  and  feather-work. 
These  he  left  with  them  perforce.  But  his  treasure  of  jewels 
he  cast  into  the  fountain  of  Cozcaapan  hard  by.  Another 
magician  whom  he  met  insisted  upon  his  drinking  a draught 
which  he  could  give  “ to  none  of  the  living.”  Intoxicated, 
he  slept,  and  when  he  awoke,  tore  his  hair.  That  place  was 
called  Cachtoca.  Pursuing  his  journey,  he  passed  between 
a mountain  of  snow  and  a volcano,  where  his  hump-backed 
and  dwarfish  servants  perished  from  the  excessive  cold. 
Bitterly  he  bewailed  their  death  in  song.  Passing  on,  leaving 
signs  of  his  progress  on  every  hand,  and  sliding  down  the 
mountains,  he  tarried  here  and  there,  building  a tlachtli 
court  at  one  place,  the  markings  of  which  were  visible  in 
deep  gashes  on  the  hills.  Once  he  transfixed  a tree  with  a 
dart  or  with  another  tree,  so  that  it  resembled  a cross.  In 
other  localities  he  constructed  subterranean  houses  ( mictlan - 
calco),  and  elsewhere  balanced  a great  rolling-stone,  and  on 
all  these  spots  he  conferred  names.  At  length  he  came  to 
the  sea-shore,  where  he  commanded  that  a raft  of  snakes 
( coatapochtli ) should  be  constructed  for  him.  In  this  he 
seated  himself  as  in  a canoe,  put  out  to  sea,  and  set  out  for 
Tlapallan.1 

Torquemada’s  account  of  the  Quetzal coatl  myth  some- 
what resembles  that  of  Sahagun,  due,  no  doubt,  to  the 
circumstance  that  he  had  access  to  the  unpublished  MS.  of 
that  author,  from  which  he  borrowed  in  a wholesale  manner. 
The  points  of  difference  are  these  : Quetzalcoatl  was  high- 
priest  of  Tollan,  whence  he  migrated  to  Cholula.  The  ruler 
of  Tollan  was  one  Huemac,  but  Quetzalcoatl  was  its  chief 
in  spiritual  and  ecclesiastical  matters.  In  drinking  the  magic 
potion  of  Tezcatlipoca,  Quetzalcoatl  desired  to  render  himself 
immortal.  He  left  the  impress  of  his  body  on  a stone  situated 
on  a mountain  near  the  city  of  TlalnepantJa  (or  Temacpalco), 
two  leagues  from  Mexico,  as  the  natives  declared  to  Torque- 
mada  himself.  Met  by  the  sorcerers  Tezcatlipoca  and  the 
others  who  tried  to  hinder  his  going,  he  refused  to  stay  his 
progress,  and  said  that  he  must  pass  on  to  the  sun-land. 

1 Sahagun,  bk.  iii,  o.  xii,  xiii,  xiv. 


126 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


Father  Sahagun,  remarks  Torquemada,  when  at  Xochimilco, 
was  asked  by  the  natives,  who  were  keenly  desirous  of  know- 
ledge on  the  point,  where  Tlapallan  was,  and  replied  that  he 
did  not  know,  as  he  had  then  not  been  long  among  them. 
The  fountain  in  which  Quetzalcoatl  cast  his  jewels  was  now 
called  Coaapan,  “ in  the  snake-water.”  He  then  passed  on 
to  Cholula,  where  he  was  adored  as  a god.  When  he  had 
resided  there  for  twenty  years,  he  was  expelled  by  Tezcatli- 
poca.  Setting  out  once  more  for  Tlapallan,  accompanied  by 
four  virtuous  youths,  he  embarked  at  Coatzacoalco.  Bidding 
farewell  to  his  disciples,  he  assured  them  that  at  a future 
time  there  would  come  by  way  of  the  sea,  where  the  sun  rises, 
certain  white  men  with  white  beards,  like  him,  and  that 
these  would  be  his  brothers  and  would  rule  the  land.  These 
disciples  became  the  rulers  of  the  four  provinces  of  Cholula. 
Quetzalcoatl  was  god  of  the  air,  and  during  his  life  on  earth 
was  devoted  to  the  careful  observance  of  the  older  forms  of 
worship,  but  instituted  many  new  rites,  ceremonies,  and 
festivals  and  made  the  calendar.  Barren  women  prayed  to 
him.  He  swept  the  road,  so  that  the  Tlaloque  might  rain. 
For  a month  or  so  before  the  rainy  season  stormy  winds 
blew  throughout  New  Spain.  The  Cholulans  preserved  as 
relics  green  stones  that  had  belonged  to  him,  on  one  of 
which  was  carved  a monkey’s  head.  A great  temple  to  him 
was  founded  at  Cholula.1 

Elsewhere  Torquemada  descants  on  the  Quetzalcoatl  myth 
as  follows  : A body  of  men  came  from  the  north  by  way  of 
Panuco,  dressed  in  long  robes  of  black  linen,  cut  low  at  the 
neck,  with  short  sleeves.  They  came  to  Tollan,  but  finding 
the  country  there  too  thickly  peopled,  passed  on  to  Cholula, 
where  they  were  well  received.  Their  chief  was  Quetzalcoatl, 
a man  with  ruddy  complexion  and  long  beard.  These  people 
multiplied  and  sent  colonists  to  the  Mixtec  and  Zapotec 
countries,  raising  the  great  buildings  at  Mitla.  They  were 
cunning  handicraftsmen,  not  so  good  at  masonry  as  at 
jewellers’  work,  sculpture,  and  agriculture.  Tezcatlipoca 
and  Huemac  conceived  an  enmity  to  Quetzalcoatl,  and  as 

1 Monarq.  Ind.,  tom.  ii,  pp.  48-52. 


THE  MAKING  OF  A CALENDAR 


127 


he  did  not  wish  to  go  to  war  with  them,  he  and  his  folk 
removed  to  Onohualco  (Yucatan,  Tabasco,  and  Campeche).1 

Motolinia  says  of  Quctzalcoatl  that  when  Iztacmixcoatl, 
the  Mexican  Adam,  married  his  second  wife  Chimalmat,  she 
bore  him  Quetzalcoatl,  who  grew  up  chaste  and  temperate. 
He  instituted  fasting  and  mortification,  and  never  married. 
He  founded  the  custom  of  drawing  blood  from  the  ears  and 
tongue  in  penitence.  A certain  Chichemecatl  fastened  a 
leather  strap  to  his  arm,  near  the  shoulder,  and  from  that 
time  this  Chichemacatl  was  known  as  Acolhuatl,  and  became 
the  ancestor  of  the  Colhua.  Quetzalcoatl  was  god  of  the  air 
and  many  temples  were  raised  to  him.* 

Mendieta  has  much  to  say  of  Quetzalcoatl,  but  in  a 
synopsis  of  his  account  we  retain  only  such  circumstances  as 
have  not  been  already  alluded  to  : Many  different  traditions 
regarding  Quetzalcoatl  existed,  some  saying  that  he  was 
the  son  of  Camacotli  (Camaxtli),  god  of  hunting  and  fishing, 
and  of  his  wife  Chimialuna  ; others  that  Chimialuna,  when 
sweeping  one  day,  found  a chalchihuitl  stone,  by  virtue  of 
which  she  became  miraculously  pregnant  and  gave  birth 
to  Quetzalcoatl,  who  came  either  from  Tollan  or  Yucatan. 
The  people  came  to  love  him,  not  only  because  he  taught 
them  handicrafts,  and  desired  no  offerings  but  those  of 
bread,  flowers,  and  perfumes.  He  forbade  all  war  and 
disturbance.  Pilgrims  came  to  his  shrine  at  Cholula  from 
all  parts  of  Mexico,  even  the  enemies  of  Cholula,  and  the 
lords  of  distant  lands  built  them  chapels  and  idols  there. 
Among  all  the  gods  only  Quetzalcoatl  was  called  Lord,  and 
men  swore  by  him.  The  gods  thought  it  well  that  the 
people  should  have  some  means  of  writing  by  which  they 
might  direct  themselves,  and  two  of  their  number,  Oxomoco 
and  Cipactonal,  who  dwelt  in  a cave  in  Cuernavaca,  especially 
considered  the  matter.  Cipactonal  thought  that  her  descen- 
dant Quetzalcoatl  should  be  consulted,  and  she  called  him  into 
counsel.  He,  too,  thought  the  idea  of  a calendar  good,  and 
the  two  addressed  themselves  to  the  task  of  making  the 
tonalamatl.  To  Cipactonal  was  given  the  privilege  of  choosing 
1 Monarq.  Ind.,  tom.  i,  pp.  254-256.  * Hist,  de  los  Indios. 


128 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


and  writing  the  first  sign.  She  painted  the  cipactli  animal, 
and  called  the  sign  ce  cipactli  (“one  cipactli”).  Oxmoco 
then  wrote  ome  acatl  (“  two  cane  ”),  and  Quetzalcoatl  “ three 
house,”  and  so  on,  until  the  thirteen  signs  were  completed.1 

Another  form  of  the  Quetzalcoatl  myth  given  by  Mendieta 
is  in  substance  as  follows  : Tezcatlipoca  let  himself  down 
from  the  upper  regions  by  means  of  a spider’s  web,  and 
coming  to  Tollan  engaged  in  a game  of  tlachtli  (the  native 
ball  game)  with  Quetzalcoatl,  in  the  midst  of  which  he 
transformed  himself  into  a tiger.  Those  who  watched  the 
game  were  panic-stricken,  and  cast  themselves  pell-mell 
into  a ravine,  and  were  drowned  in  a river  which  flowed 
therein.  Tezcatlipoca  then  harassed  Quetzalcoatl  from  city 
to  city,  until  he  drove  him  to  Cholula,  and  latterly  to 
Tlapallan,  where  he  died,  and  where  his  followers  burnt  his 
body,  thus  inaugurating  the  custom  of  burning  the  dead.1 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  T elleriano-Remensis  says 
regarding  Quetzalcoatl : 

“ Quetcalcoatl  they  say  was  he  who  created  the  world  ; 
and  they  bestowed  upon  him  the  appellation  of  Lord  of 
the  Wind,  because  they  said  that  Tonacatecotli  when  it 
appeared  good  to  him  breathed  and  begat  Quecalcoatle. 
They  erected  round  temples  to  him  without  any  corners. 
They  said  that  it  was  he  (who  was  also  lord  of  these  thirteen 
signs  which  are  here  represented)  who  formed  the  first  man. 
They  celebrated  a festival  on  the  sign  of  four  earthquakes, 
to  the  destroyer  with  reference  to  the  fate  which  again 
waited  the  world  ; for  they  said  that  it  had  undergone  four 
destructions  and  would  again  be  destroyed.  He  alone  had 
a human  body  like  that  of  men ; the  other  gods  were  of  an 
incorporeal  nature. 

“ After  the  deluge  the  custom  of  sacrificing  commenced. 
Topilcin  Quetcalcoatle  was  born  on  the  day  of  seven  canes  ; 
and  they  celebrated  on  this  same  day  of  seven  canes  a great 
festival  in  Cholula,  to  which  they  came  from  all  parts  of  the 
country  and  the  cities  and  brought  great  presents  to  the 
lords  and  papas  of  the  temple  ; and  they  did  the  same  on 
1 Hist.  Ecles.,  pp.  82,  86,  92-93,  97-98.  3 Hist.  Edes.,  p.  82. 


QUETZALCOATL  AS  THE  PLANET  VENUS  129 


the  day  on  which  he  disappeared  or  died,  which  was  the  day 
of  One  Cane.  These  festivals  happened  at  the  expiration  of 
every  period  of  fifty-two  years. 

“ They  here  fasted  the  last  four  days  to  Quecalcoatl  of 
Tula,  who  is  he  who  was  named  after  the  first  Calcoatle  ; 
and  now  they  name  him  One  Cane,  which  is  the  star  Venus, 
of  which  they  tell  the  fable  accredited  amongst  them. 

“ Tlavizcalpantecutli  is  the  star  Venus  the  first  created 
light  (Civahteltona)  before  the  deluge.  They  say  that  it  was  a 
fire  or  a star  : it  was  created  before  the  sun.  This  star 
(Venus)  is  Quecalcoatle.  They  say  this  is  the  star  which  we 
call  Lucifer  from  its  light ; and  they  accordingly  paint  it 
with  the  sign  of  one  Cane,  which  was  the  day  dedicated  to 
it.  He  took  this  name  on  the  occasion  of  his  departure  or 
disappearance.  Tlavizcalpantecutli  is  the  God  of  Morning 
when  it  begins  to  dawn  : he  is  also  the  Lord  of  Twilight  on 
the  approach  of  Night : he  presided  over  these  thirteen 

days  during  the  four  last  of  which  they  fasted.  It  properly 
was  the  first  light  which  appeared  in  the  world  ; it  here 
signifies  the  light  which  diffuses  itself  over  things,  or  the 
surface  of  the  earth.” 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A says  : 

“ They  invented  dreams,  the  result  of  their  own  blindness, 
relating  that  a god  of  the  name  of  Citallatonac,  which  is 
the  sign  seen  in  heaven  called  St.  James’s  or  the  Milky  Way, 
sent  an  ambassador  from  heaven  on  an  embassy  to  a virgin 
of  Tulan  called  Chimalman  (a  shield)  who  had  two  sisters, 
the  one  named  Tzochitlique  and  the  other  Couatlique  ; and 
that  the  three  being  alone  in  the  house,  two  of  them,  observing 
the  ambassador  of  heaven,  died  of  fright,  Chimalman  alone 
remaining  alive,  to  whom  the  ambassador  announced  that 
it  was  the  will  of  this  god  that  she  should  conceive  a son  ; 
and  having  delivered  to  her  the  message,  he  rose  and  left 
the  house,  and  as  soon  as  he  had  left  it  she  conceived  a son 
without  connexion  with  man,  who  they  called  Quetzalcoatle, 
who  they  say  is  the  god  of  air,  and  his  temples  are  round  in 
the  manner  of  churches,  although  till  that  time  such  was 
not  the  fashion  of  their  temples.  He  was  the  inventor  of 
9 


130 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


temples  of  this  form  as  we  shall  show.  He  it  was,  as  they 
say,  who  caused  hurricanes  and  in  my  opinion  wras  the  god 
who  was  called  Citaladuali  and  it  was  he  who  destroyed  the 
world  by  winds.  This  painting  is  here  wanting,  together 
with  another  which  represented  that  as  soon  as  the  son  of 
this  virgin  was  born  he  possessed  the  use  of  reason.  The 
son  of  the  virgin,  Topilcin  Quetzalcoatle,  knowing  that  the 
vices  of  men  were  necessarily  the  cause  of  the  troubles  of 
the  world,  determined  on  asking  the  goddess  Chalchiutlicue 
(this  was  the  heavenly  designation  of  the  virgin  Chimalman) 
who  is  she  who  remained  after  the  deluge  with  the  man  in 
the  tree,  and  is  the  mother  of  the  god  Tlaloque,  whom  they 
have  made  goddess  of  water,  that  they  might  obtain  rain 
when  they  stood  in  need  of  and  accordingly  Quetzalcoatle 
commenced  offering  sacrifices  to  obtain  rain,  as  a period  of 
four  years  had  elapsed  since  it  had  rained. 

“ Quetzalcoatltopilzin  does  penance  and  makes  offerings  of 
prayers,  sacrifice,  gold  gems,  incense,  etc.,  to  appease  divine 
wrath  against  the  people  ; draws  his  own  blood  with  thorns. 
After  the  expiration  of  a long  period  during  which  he  con- 
tinued his  penance  a lizard  appeared  scratching  the  ground 
giving  him  to  understand  that  the  scourge  of  heaven  was 
past  and  that  the  earth  would  with  joy  produce  its  fruits, 
which  quickly  came  to  pass  ; and  accordingly  they  relate 
that  on  a sudden  such  abundance  followed  that  the  earth, 
which  had  remained  so  many  years  barren,  bore  many  kinds 
of  fruit  and  from  that  even  they  took  four  signs. 

“ Quetzalcoatl’s  example  teaches  men  to  do  penance,  make 
offerings.  He  founded  four  temples — the  first  for  the  nobles  ; 
second,  for  the  people  ; third,  House  of  Fear  or  Serpent ; 
fourth,  Temple  of  Shame. 

“ Of  Quetzalcoatle  they  relate  that,  proceeding  on  his 
journey,  he  arrived  at  the  Red  Sea,  which  is  here  painted, 
and  which  they  named  Tlapallan  ; and  that  entering  into  it, 
they  saw  no  more  of  him,  nor  knew  what  became  of  him, 
except  that  they  say  that  he  desired  them  at  the  time  of  his 
departure  to  restrain  their  grief  and  to  expect  his  return, 
which  would  take  place  at  the  appointed  time  ; and  accord- 


PROPHECIES  REGARDING  QUETZALCOATL  131 


ingly  they  expect  him  even  to  the  present  time  : and  when 
the  Spaniards  came  to  this  country  they  believed  that  it 
was  he,  and  when  at  a later  period  of  1550  when  the  Capotecas 
revolted,  they  alleged,  as  the  cause  of  their  insurrection,  the 
report  that  their  god  who  had  to  redeem  them  had  already 
come.  Quetzalcoatle  was  born  on  the  sign  One  Cane  ; and 
the  year  of  the  Spaniards’  arrival  commenced  on  the  sign 
One  Cane,  according  to  their  ancient  Computation  : whence 
the  occasion  arose  of  their  believing  that  the  Spaniards  were 
their  gods  ; because  they  say  that  he  had  foretold  that  a 
bearded  nation  would  arrive  in  those  countries  who  would 
subject  them.  They  adored  him  as  a god,  as  will  be  seen  : 
for  they  believed  it  certain  that  he  had  ascended  into  heaven 
and  was  that  star  which  was  visible  at  the  north  of  the  sun 
before  the  break  of  day,  which  is  the  planet  Venus  ; and 
they  represented  him  accordingly  as  has  already  been  shown. 

“ Quetzalcoatle  was  the  first  inventor  of  sacrifices  of 
human  blood,  amongst  the  various  other  things  which  they 
offered  to  the  gods  ; and  this  was  the  manner  in  which  they 
pierced  their  tongues,  that  the  blood  might  flow  . . . and 
their  ears  and  penis  ; till  at  last,  as  we  shall  presently  mention, 
the  custom  of  human  sacrifices  was  introduced,  when  they 
tore  out  the  hearts  of  the  victims  to  present  them  to  the  face 
of  the  idol  which  they  considered  the  image  of  their  wretched 
god. 

“ They  declare  that  their  supreme  deity  Tonacatecotle, 
whom  we  have  just  mentioned,  who  by  another  name  was 
called  Citinatonali,  when  it  appeared  good  to  him,  breathed 
and  begot  Quetzalcoatle,  not  by  connexion  with  woman, 
but  by  his  breath  alone,  as  we  have  observed  above,  when 
he  sent  his  ambassador,  as  they  say,  to  the  virgin  of  Tula. 
They  believed  him  to  be  the  god  of  the  air  and  he  was  the  first 
to  whom  they  built  temples  and  churches,  which  they  formed 
perfectly  round  without  any  angles.  They  say  that  it  was 
he  who  effected  the  reformation  of  the  world  by  penance, 
since  as,  according  to  his  account,  his  father  had  created  the 
world  and  men  had  given  themselves  up  to  vice,  on  which 
account  it  had  been  frequently  destroyed,  Citinatonali  sent 


132 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


his  son  into  the  world  to  reform  it.  . . . They  assigned  to 
him  the  dominion  over  the  other  thirteen  signs,  which  are 
here  represented,  in  the  same  manner  in  which  they  assigned 
the  preceding  thirteen  to  his  father.  They  celebrated  a great 
festival  on  this  sign,  as  we  shall  see  on  the  sign  of  four  earth- 
quakes, which  is  the  fourth  in  order  here,  because  they  feared 
that  the  world  would  be  destroyed  in  that  sign,  as  he  had  fore- 
told to  them  when  he  disappeared  in  the  Red  Sea,  which 
event  occurred  on  the  same  sign.  As  they  considered  him 
their  advocate,  they  celebrated  a solemn  festival  and  fasted 
during  four  signs.” 

The  Anales  de  Quauhtitlan  or  Codex  Chimalpopoca  states 
that  Quetzalcoatl  was  born  in  no  natural  manner,  but  was  a 
nine  years’  child.  He  created  the  four  classes  of  men  : the 
men  of  the  four  “ suns  ” or  periods  of  the  world  were  made 
by  him  on  the  day  chicome  ehecatl,  or  “ seven  wind.”  The 
record  proceeds  to  relate  the  circumstances  of  his  rule  at 
Tollan,  the  manner  in  which  he  discovered  the  value  of 
precious  stones,  gold  and  silver,  red  and  white  shells,  quetzal 
feathers,  the  cotinga  and  red  sparrowbill  feathers,  the  various 
species  of  cocoa  and  cotton.  When  he  had  drunk  the  octli 
offered  him  by  Tezcatlipoca,  he  forgot  his  chastity  in  the 
intoxication  and  indulged  in  intercourse  with  Quetzalpetlatl, 
for  which  sin  he  was  forced  to  quit  Mexico.  When  he  was 
driven  from  Tollan  in  the  year  one  reed,  he  arrived  on  the 
sea-shore,  wept,  and  divested  himself  of  his  garb  and  tur- 
quoise snake-mask.  Then  he  immolated  himself  by  burning, 
his  ashes  became  dust  and  changed  into  birds  and  his  heart 
was  converted  into  the  morning  star.  Lastly,  it  is  said  of 
him  that  when  he  died  he  was  not  visible  for  four  days, 
during  which  period  he  tarried  in  the  Underworld.  For  a 
subsequent  four  days  “ he  was  bones.”  “ After  eight  days 
appeared  the  great  star  which  they  called  Quetzalcoatl. 
They  said  that  he  thus  mounted  the  throne  as  a god.” 

In  its  second  or  historical  portion  the  codex  states  that 
Quetzalcoatl  discovered  maize  which  was  concealed  in  the 
mountain  Tonacatcpetl.  Many  of  the  gods  searched  for  it, 
but  Quetzalcoatl,  taking  the  form  of  a black  ant,  was  guided 


MAYA  MYTHS  OF  QUETZALCOATL 


133 


to  the  spot  by  a red  ant.  As  he  was  unable  to  lift  the  moun- 
tain, it  was  split  open  by  the  magical  prowess  of  Xolotl  in 
his  manifestation  of  Nanahuatl,  and  the  maize  became  the 
spoil  of  Quetzalcoatl.  But  it  was  stolen  from  him  by  Tlaloc, 
the  rain-god  proper,  perhaps  an  allegorical  manner  of  alluding 
to  the  more  direct  influence  of  that  deity  upon  growth. 

Other  myths  relating  to  Quetzalcoatl,  chiefly  as  a creative 
agency,  will  be  found  in  the  precis  of  the  opening  chapters  of 
the  Ilistoria  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sits  Pinturas,  in  the  chapter 
on  Cosmogony. 

In  Codex  Borgia  we  find  a passage  (sheets  35-46)  which 
appears  to  refer  to  the  progress  of  Quetzalcoatl  and  Tezcatli- 
poca  through  the  infernal  regions,  and  which  might  be  de- 
scribed as  the  Mexican  “ Harrying  of  Hell.”  On  this  passage 
Seler  has  briefly  commented  (see  his  Commentary  on  Codex 
Vaticanus  B,  p.  119). 

CENTRAL  AMERICAN  MYTHS  RELATING  TO 
QUETZALCOATL 

Quetzalcoatl  is,  perhaps,  singular  among  the  deities  of 
Mexico  in  that  a number  of  well-authenticated  Central 
American  myths  cluster  around  his  name  in  its  forms  of 
Kukulcan,  Gucumatz,  and  Votan.  Certain  of  these  must 
be  considered  here,  for  purposes  of  comparison  and  analogy. 

Nunez  de  la  Vega  : A book  in  the  Quiche  tongue,  said  to 
have  been  written  by  Votan,  a local  name  for  Quetzalcoatl, 
was  at  one  time  in  the  possession  of  Nunez  de  la  Vega,  Bishop 
of  Chiapas,  who  included  portions  of  it  in  his  Constituciones 
Diocesianos  de  Chiapas,  but  nevertheless  destroyed  it  in  his 
holocaust  of  MSS.  at  Heuheutlan  in  1691.  Ordonez  de  Agui- 
lar had,  however,  made  a copy  of  it  before  its  destruction,  and 
incorporated  it  in  his  Ilistoria  de  Cielo  MS.  In  this  work 
Votan  declared  himself  “ a snake,”  a descendant  of  Imos, 
of  the  line  of  Chan  1 of  the  race  of  Chi  vim.  Taking  Aguilar’s 
account  along  with  that  of  Nunez  de  la  Vega,  as  both  rely 
upon  the  same  authority,  we  find  that  Votan  proceeded  to 
America  by  divine  command,  his  mission  being  to  lay  the 
1 A Lacandone  Indian  tribe  near  Palenque. 


134 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


foundation  of  civilization.  With  this  object  in  view  he 
departed  from  Valum  Chivim,1  passing  the  dwelling  of  the 
thirteen  snakes,  and  arrived  in  Valum  Votan,  whence,  with 
some  members  of  his  family,  he  set  out  to  form  a settlement, 
ascending  the  Usumacinta  River  and  ultimately  founding 
Palenque.  By  reason  of  their  peculiar  dress  the  Tzendal 
Indians  called  them  Tzequitles,  or  “ men  with  shirts,”  but 
consented  to  amalgamate  with  them.  Ordonez  states  that 
when  Votan  had  established  himself  at  Palenque  he  made 
several  visits  to  his  original  home.  On  one  of  these  he  came 
to  a tower  which  had  been  intended  to  reach  the  heavens,  a 
project  which  had  been  brought  to  naught  by  the  linguistic 
confusion  of  those  who  conceived  it.  Finally  he  was  per- 
mitted to  reach  “ the  rock  of  heaven  ” by  a subterranean 
passage.  Returning  to  Palenque,  he  found  that  others  of 
his  race  had  arrived  there,  and  with  them  he  made  a friendly 
pact.  He  built  a temple  by  the  Heuheutan  River,  known, 
from  its  subterranean  chambers,  as  “ the  Plouse  of  Darkness,” 
and  here  he  deposited  the  national  records  under  the  charge  of 
certain  old  men  called  tlapianes,  or  guardians,  and  an  order 
of  priestesses.  Here  also  were  kept  a number  of  tapirs.  A 
quotation  of  the  passage  dealing  with  this  temple  may  be 
made  from  Nunez  de  la  Vega  : 

“ Votan  is  the  third  heathen  in  the  calendar  (that  is  the 
deity  who  is  ascribed  to  the  third  division  of  the  calendar), 
and  in  the  little  history  written  in  the  Indian  language  all 
the  provinces  and  cities  in  which  he  tarried  were  mentioned  ; 
and  to  this  day  there  is  always  a clan  in  the  city  of  Teopisa 
that  they  call  the  Votans.  It  is  also  said  that  he  is  the  lord 
of  the  hollow  wooden  instrument  which  they  call  tepanaguaste 
(that  is,  the  Mexican  teponaztli) ; that  he  saw  the  great  wall, 
namely,  the  tower  of  Babel,  which  was  built  from  earth  to 
heaven  at  the  bidding  of  his  grandfather,  Noah  ; and  that 
he  was  the  first  man  whom  God  sent  to  divide  and  apportion 
this  country  of  India,  and  that  there,  where  he  saw  the  great 
wall,  he  gave  to  every  nation  its  special  language.  It  is 
related  that  he  tarried  in  Huehueta  (which  is  a city  in  Soco- 

JLand  of  Chivim. 


THE  POPOL  VUII 


135 


nusco),  and  that  there  he  placed  a tapir  and  a great  treasure 
in  a slippery  (damp,  dark,  subterranean)  house,  which  he  built 
by  the  breath  of  his  nostrils,  and  he  appointed  a woman  as 
chieftain,  with  tapiancs  (that  is,  Mexican  tlapiani,  “ keepers  ”) 
to  guard  her.  This  treasure  consisted  of  jars,  which  were 
closed  with  covers  of  the  same  clay,  and  of  a room  in  which 
the  picture  of  the  ancient  heathens  who  are  in  the  calendar 
were  engraved  in  stone,  together  with  chalchiuites  (which 
are  small,  heavy,  green  stones)  and  other  superstitious  images  ; 
and  the  chieftainess  herself  and  the  tapianes,  her  guardians, 
surrendered  all  these  things,  which  were  publicly  burned  in 
the  market  place  of  Huehueta  when  we  inspected  the  afore- 
said province  in  1691.  All  the  Indians  greatly  revere  this 
Votan,  and  in  a certain  province  they  call  him  ‘ heart  of  the 
cities  ’ ( Corazon  de  los  pueblos)” 

In  his  ninth  Pastoral  Letter  Nunez  says  of  Quetzal coatl : 

“ In  most  of  the  Calendars,  the  seventh  sign  is  the  figure 
of  a man  and  a snake,  which  they  call  Cuchulchan.  The 
masters  have  explained  it  as  a snake  with  feathers  which 
moves  in  the  water.  This  sign  corresponds  with  Mexzichaut 
(Mixcoatl),  which  means  Cloudy  Serpent,  or,  of  the  clouds. 
The  people  also  consult  them  in  order  to  work  injury  on  their 
enemies,  taking  the  lives  of  many  through  such  devilish 
artifices,  and  committing  unspeakable  atrocities.” 

The  Popol  Vuh. — The  myths  relating  to  Quetzalcoatl  under 
his  name  of  Gucumatz  in  the  Popol  Vuh,  the  sacred  book  of  the 
Quiche  of  Guatemala,  are  difficult  to  summarize.  In  the  first 
chapter  he  is  alluded  to  as  “ the  serpent  covered  with 
feathers,  the  heart  of  the  lakes,  the  heart  of  the  sea,  master 
of  the  sky,  master  of  the  blue  expanse,”  and  is  connected 
with  the  creative  gods.  Along  with  Ilurakan  (Tezcatlipoca) 
he  creates  the  world  by  uttering  the  word  “ earth.” 
The  creation  of  man  having  been  considered,  the  wherewithal 
for  his  sustenance  is  debated.  Gucumatz,  who  is  sometimes 
alluded  to  in  the  plural,  like  the  Hebrew  Elohim,  succeeds 
in  discovering  maize  in  Paxil  by  the  aid  of  the  fox,  jackal, 
parrot,  and  crow,  and  obtains  the  seeds  of  other  alimentary 
plants  (pt.  iii,  c.  i.)  Gucumatz  then  created  man  by  a 


136 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


“ miracle  ” (c.  ii).  In  c.  v,  pt.  iii,  Quetzalcoatl  is  alluded  to 
as  Tohil,  a parallel  for  which  we  have  justification  in  ver.  19 
of  c.  x,  where  in  the  song  called  Kamucu  (“  We  see”)  the 
first  men  sing  : “ Truly  Tohil  is  the  name  of  the  god  of  the 
Zaqui  nation,  which  was  called  Yolcuat-quetzalcuat  when 
we  separated  in  the  place  Tolan  in  Zuiva.”  But  the  myths 
relating  to  this  deity  are  obviously  tribal  and  local,  and 
I am  of  opinion  that  they  refer  to  some  tribal  deity  who 
possessed  some  of  the  characteristics  of  Quetzalcoatl  and 
who  was  identified  with  him  by  the  Quiches  in  rather  an 
arbitrary  fashion.1 

FESTIVALS 

Atlacahualco. — The  festival  of  Atlacahualco  or  Quaitl  Eloa 
was,  says  Sahagun,  sacred  to  Quetzalcoatl,  as  well  as  to  the 
Tlaloque.  For  an  account  of  it  see  the  section  which  deals 
with  Tlaloc. 

Ce  Acatl. — Says  Sahagun  : “ On  the  first  day  of  the  sign 
ce  acatl  the  great  folk  made  a feast  to  Quetzalcoatl,  the  god 
of  winds.  This  was  celebrated  in  the  calmecac,  and  here  they 
offered  rich  gifts  to  his  idol,  perfumes  and  things  to  eat. 
They  said  it  was  the  sign  of  Quetzalcoatl.” 

PRIESTHOOD 

The  order  of  priests  devoted  to  the  service  of  Quetzalcoatl 8 
was  called  Tlamacazcayotl,  and  its  members  Tlamacazque. 
Of  these  Clavigero,  who  was  well  informed  regarding  the 
Mexican  priesthood,  says  : “ Amongst  the  different  orders 
or  congregation,  both  of  men  and  women,  who  dedicated 
themselves  to  the  worship  of  some  particular  gods,  that  of 
Quetzalcoatl  is  worthy  to  be  mentioned.  The  life  led  in  the 
colleges  or  monasteries  of  either  sex,  which  were  devoted  to 
this  imaginary  god,  was  uncommonly  rigid  and  austere. 

1 The  myths  relating  to  him  under  the  name  of  Tohil  appear  to  me  to  identify 
Tohil  more  with  Tezcatlipoca.  See  Brassuer,  Le  Vuh  Popol,  passim. 

3 The  circumstance  that  the  two  high-priests  of  Mexico,  the  pontiffs  of  the 
cults  of  Uitzilopochtli  and  Tlaloc,  had  the  name  Quetzalcoatl  prefixed  to  their 
official  descriptions  merely  indicates  that  it  had  passed  into  a sacerdotal  title. 
They  were  in  no  special  sense  attached  to  the  worship  of  the  god. 


PRIESTHOOD  OF  QUETZALCOATL 


137 


The  dress  of  the  order  was  extremely  decent ; they  bathed 
regularly  at  midnight,  and  watched  until  about  two  hours 
before  day,  singing  hymns  to  their  god,  and  observing  many 
rules  of  an  austere  life.  They  were  at  liberty  to  go  to  the 
mountains  at  any  hour  of  the  day  or  night,  to  spill  their  blood  ; 
this  was  permitted  them  from  a respect  to  the  virtue  which 
they  were  all  thought  to  possess.  The  superiors  of  the 
monasteries  bore  also  the  name  of  Quetzalcoatl,  and  were 
persons  of  such  high  authority,  that  they  visited  but  the  king 
when  it  was  necessary.  The  members  of  this  religious  order 
were  destined  to  it  from  their  infancy.  The  parents  of  the 
child  invited  the  superior  to  an  entertainment,  who  usually 
deputed  one  of  his  subjects.  The  deputy  brought  the  child 
to  him,  upon  which  he  took  the  boy  in  his  arms  and  offered 
him  with  a prayer  to  Quetzalcoatl,  and  put  a collar  about 
his  neck,  which  was  to  be  worn  until  he  was  seven  years  old. 
When  the  boy  completed  his  second  year,  the  superior  made 
a small  incision  in  his  breast,  which,  like  the  collar,  was 
another  mark  of  his  destination.  As  soon  as  the  boy 
attained  his  seventh  year  he  entered  into  the  monastery, 
having  first  heard  a long  discourse  from  his  parents,  in  which 
they  advertised  him  of  the  vow  which  they  had  made  to 
Quetzalcoatl,  and  exhorted  him  to  fulfil  it,  to  behave  well, 
to  submit  himself  to  his  prelate,  and  to  pray  to  the  gods  for 
his  parents  and  the  whole  nation.” 

The  high-priest  of  Quetzalcoatl  was  stationed  at  Cholula 
and  was,  perhaps,  the  most  venerated  ecclesiastic  in  Mexico. 

TEMPLES 

The  principal  temple  of  the  cult  of  Quetzalcoatl  in  Mexico 
was  the  well-known  teocalli  at  Cholula.  He  had  also  a shrine 
in  the  great  temple  court  at  Mexico,  built  in  circular  form, 
and  thus  typical  of  the  Wind-god. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

The  latest  of  the  myths  concerning  Quetzalcoatl  are 
obviously  those  which  regard  him  as  a culture-hero  who  enters 
the  country  as  an  alien,  and,  his  beneficent  work  performed, 


138 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


withdraws  to  the  place  whence  he  came,  under  pressure  of 
malignant  opposition.  Had  the  basic  outline  of  his  myth 
been  more  carefully  examined,  fewer  unsatisfactory  hypo- 
theses concerning  Quetzal coatl’s  nature  might  have  been 
ventured  upon.  The  Mexicans  themselves  recognized 
Quetzalcoatl  as  a wind-god,  but  Dr.  Seler  has  not  seen  fit  to 
accept  their  assurance  upon  this  point  in  toio,  and  at  various 
times  has  advanced  the  hypotheses  that  Quetzalcoatl  repre- 
sents the  wind,  the  planet  Venus,  or  the  moon,  latterly  con- 
fining his  personality  almost  entirely  to  the  lamp  of  night.1 

In  my  view  the  physical  phenomena  which  occur  in  con- 
nexion with  the  courses  of  the  winds  typical  of  the  Mexican 
plateau  provide  by  far  the  most  simple  and  natural  explana- 
tion of  the  nature  of  the  god  Quetzalcoatl.  From  April  or 
May  to  the  beginning  of  October  the  trade-wind  blows  from 
the  east  coast  over  the  Plateau  of  Anahuac,  bringing  with  it 
abundance  of  rain,  and  accelerating  vegetable  growth,  thus 
actually  “ sweeping  the  ways  for  the  rain-gods.”  Its  advance 
is  comparatively  slow,  the  rains  beginning  three  or  four  weeks 
earlier  in  Vera  Cruz  than  in  Puebla  and  Mexico.  At  the 
beginning  of  October,  however,  it  is  invariably  modified  by 
the  local  monsoon,  which  interrupts  it  over  wide  areas,  or 
in  certain  districts  invades  it  in  violent  cyclonic  storms,  dis- 
sipating its  energies  and  altering  its  course.  Quetzalcoatl 
represents  the  gentle  trade-wind,  which  ushers  in  the  growth- 
making rains.  His  reign  of  peace,  plenty,  and  fertility  over, 
he  comes  into  opposition  with  Tezcatlipoca,  who  represents 
the  monsoon  and  who  chases  his  rival  “ from  city  to  city,” 
ravening  at  him  like  a tiger,  says  Mendieta,  and  at  last  hust- 
ling him  out  of  the  country.  That  Tezcatlipoca  is  also  a god 
of  wind  is  certain,  as  is  proved  by  one  of  his  names,  Yoalli 
Ehecatl,  “ Wind  of  Night,”  and  that  he  is  the  monsoon  or 
hurricane  is  proved  beyond  all  doubt  by  the  circumstance 
that  he  is  said  to  have  rushed  along  the  highways  at  night 
at  extraordinary  speed,  and  that  Ilurakan,  his  Quiche  name, 
is  still  employed  for  the  very  wind  he  represented,  and  has 

1 He  was,  of  course,  all  of  these,  but  as  regards  the  two  latter,  in  a subsidiary 
sense  only. 


QUETZALCOATL’S  ALIEN  ORIGIN 


139 


become  a generic  name  for  a tempestuous  wind  in  practically 
all  European  languages,  which  have  without  question  adopted 
it  from  the  American  word.1 

If  this  simple  elucidation  of  the  original  myth  be  accepted, 
it  will  be  seen  how  naturally  its  later  modifications  arise  out 
of  it  or  adapt  themselves  to  it.  But  before  we  examine  the 
manner  in  which  they  crystallized  around  it,  it  becomes  neces- 
sary to  disentangle  from  the  whole  mass  that  portion  of  it 
which  alludes  to  the  advent  of  a civilizing  agency  upon  the 
Mexican  plateau. 

This  speaks  of  the  advance  of  a body  of  men  from  the 
neighbourhood  of  Vera  Cruz  to  the  Mexican  plateau,  and 
precisely  in  the  direction  whence  the  trade-wind  comes — 
that  is,  from  the  east,  the  direction  of  the  land  of  the  Iluax- 
tecs,  a people  of  proto-Maya  stock. 

Quetzalcoatl  is  dressed  in  Huaxtec  garb,  and  wears  the 
truncated  sugar-loaf  hat  and  shell-ornaments  of  this  people. 
This  may  signify  nothing  more  than  that  he  was  so  attired 
because  he  represented  a wind  which  blew  from  the  direction 
of  the  land  of  the  Huaxtecs.  Yet,  it  is  certain  that  several 
of  the  deities  adopted  by  the  Mexicans  had  undoubtedly  a 
Huaxtec  origin,  and  this  is  markedly  the  case  with  Tlazolteotl. 
There  seems  to  be  some  ground,  then,  for  the  hypothesis  that 
Quetzalcoatl  was  a god  of  Huaxtec  origin.  But  the  accept- 
ance of  such  a theory  will  entail  the  acknowledgment  of 
certain  hypotheses  which  are  among  the  most  controverted 
questions  in  Mexican  archaeology.  In  the  first  place,  it  makes 
Quetzalcoatl  the  deity  of  a people  of  Maya  stock,  and  secondly 
it  would  seem  to  imply  a Huaxtec  or  Maya  origin  for  the 
much-debated  Toltec  culture. 

A discussion  of  these  points  must  begin  with  the  question, 
“ Has  the  myth  of  Quetzalcoatl’s  civilizing  mission  to  the 
Mexican  plateau  any  historical  justification  ? ” Regarding 
the  reality  of  the  civilization  known  as  Toltec  there  is  now 
no  question,  although  I fully  admit  that  it  took  me  a long  time 
to  realize  this,  thanks  principally  to  my  acceptance  of 
Brinton’s  well-known  theory  on  the  subject,  to  which  I 

1 Spanish,  hurican  ; French,  ouragan  ; English  hurricane. 


140 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


attached  far  too  much  weight.  But  admitting  Toltec  reality, 
what  proof  do  we  possess  that  such  a civilizing  agency  as 
that  of  Quetzalcoatl  gave  an  impetus  to  the  “ prehistoric  ” 
culture  of  Tollan  ? But  little — that  is  if  we  are  to  regard 
Quetzalcoatl  as  a man.  But  in  his  guise  as  the  gentle  trade- 
wind  that  ushers  in  the  rains,  we  have  every  reason  to  see 
in  him  the  founder  of  the  Toltec  civilization.  Such  a culture 
as  the  Toltec  must  undoubtedly  have  had  its  origin  in  agricul- 
tural efficiency.  Only  through  agricultural  efficiency  can 
the  corvte  system  arise  and  extensive  building  become  possible. 
The  god  whose  bountiful  patronage  of  growth  assisted  the 
arts  in  this  manner  seems  in  time  to  have  been  ‘ humanized.’  1 
Legends  of  his  civilizing  prowess  clustered  around  his  sup- 
posititious memory,  he  was  thought  to  have  been  a culture- 
hero  who  actually  moved  and  had  his  being  among  the  people. 
Kings  or  rulers  were  called  by  his  name — a lucky  name  of 
happy  associations — and  the  illusion  that  he  actually  existed 
was  thereby  heightened.  These  rulers  seem  to  have  flourished 
in  Mexico  ere  yet  the  offices  of  king  and  priest  had  become 
separate,  so  that  it  is  not  surprising  that  Quetzalcoatl  was 
regarded  as  having  been  the  priest  of  his  own  cult,  or  that 
the  Mexican  pontiffs  of  historical  times  bore  his  name.  From 
this  point  of  view,  then,  Quetzalcoatl  was  certainly  the 
“ founder  ” of  the  Toltec  civilization.  If  this  theory  be 
accepted,  I do  not  see  how  the  myth  of  Quetzalcoatl  can  be 
regarded  as  having  any  basis  in  actual  fact,  unless  one  can 
find  in  the  rather  vague  statements  of  certain  early  writers 
on  Mexico  a further  basis  for  discussion  as  to  his  reality. 
To  me  the  meaning  of  the  myth  seems  very  plain.  It  may 
be  that  Huaxtec  influence  was  brought  to  bear  upon  Toltec 
civilization,  but  my  hypothesis  does  not  seem  to  me  to  require 
assistance  from  such  an  admission. 

CRITICISM  OF  THE  LATER  ELEMENTS  OF  QUETZAL- 
COAT  VS  MYTH 

In  short,  the  myth  of  Quetzalcoatl  as  recorded  by  Sahagun 
is  obviously  developed  from  a much  older  one  which  referred 

1 Sahagun  reverses  the  process  by  calling  Quetzalcoatl  “ a man  who  became 
a god,”  bk.  i,  c.  v. 


THE  ALLEGORY  OF  QUETZALCOATL  141 


to  a season  of  plenteous  rain — the  period  of  the  rule  of  the 
gentle  and  beneficent  god  representing  the  trade-wind.  As 
it  was  connected  with  prosperous  conditions  in  agriculture, 
it  was  naturally  brought  into  connexion  with  the  Toltec 
time,  the  “ good  old  times  of  long  ago,”  when  conditions 
were  greatly  better,  and  no  mouth  knew  want.  Such  a 
concept  was  obviously  of  later  origin.  The  revised  myth 
took  on  a cultural  complexion.  In  terms  of  allegory,  it  tells 
how  the  powers  of  the  rain-making  priest-god  fail  him  ; he 
becomes  sick,  and  is  beguiled  and  defeated  by  Tezcatlipoca, 
the  rival  wind-god,  who  tells  him  that  “ another  old  man  ” 
awaits  him  in  Tlapallan.  And  here  we  seem  to  find  inter- 
polated a reference  to  the  guardian  genius  of  the  fountain  of 
perpetual  youth,  the  reservoir  of  rain  and  all  refreshment, 
which  Quetzalcoatl  must  visit  if  he  would  be  cured  of  the 
ills  of  old  age,  and  he  is  counselled  to  speak  with  its  keeper 
if  he  would  return  to  Mexico  “ as  a boy.”  The  destruction 
of  his  treasure  by  the  banished  god  seems  to  point  to  a 
reminiscence  of  the  downfall  of  the  Toltec  state,  and  the  con- 
cealment of  his  gold  and  gems  by  burial  to  analogous  Toltec 
practice  on  the  defeat  or  decline  of  that  civilized  folk.  With 
his  departure  the  reign  of  plenty  ceases,  the  trees  wither, 
the  birds  migrate,  the  season  of  the  trade-wind  rains  has 
come  to  an  end.  History  and  myth  are  perhaps  combined  in 
this  story  of  the  latter  days  of  the  Toltec  regime  and  those 
of  the  revivifying  rains.  The  priest-god  withdraws  east- 
wards to  the  “ flute-playing  ” of  the  retreating  trade-winds. 
Nahua  sorcerers  detain  him  in  order  to  learn  the  Toltec  arts, 
perhaps  a mythical  manner  of  showing  how  the  Nahua  bar- 
barians forced  captive  Toltecs  to  teach  them  the  mysteries 
of  stone-  and  metal-craft.  He  is  given  the  draught  of  the 
dead,  “ that  none  of  the  living  can  drink,”  a mythical  episode 
common  in  all  parts  of  the  world.  His  dwarfish  followers 
(the  rain-gods,  the  Tlaloque,  with  whom  Sahagun  associates 
him  elsewhere)  are  frozen  to  death  in  the  cold  of  the  mountains, 
otherwise  the  rain  is  congealed  into  snow. 

Torquemada’s  version  ol  Quetzalcoatl’ s myth  is  eloquent 
of  the  pre-eminence  of  his  cult  at  Cholula.  The  priest-god’s 


142 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


prophecy  of  his  return  bears  an  extraordinary  resemblance 
to  that  given  in  the  Books  of  Chilan  Balam,  a Guatemalan 
native  production,  regarding  the  coming  of  white  men  to 
Central  America.1 

Motolinia’s  story  of  the  fixing  of  the  strap  on  Quetzalcoatl’s 
arm  is  merely  a grotesque  explanation  of  the  name  Acolhua, 
which  in  reality  signifies  “ the  folk  of  the  great  shoulder,” 
“ the  pushers,”  “ the  hustling  invaders.” 

Mendieta,  in  dwelling  upon  Quetzalcoatl’s  dislike  of  war, 
merely  retains  for  us  a characteristic  of  the  effeminate  people 
of  Cholula.  The  appearance  of  Tezcatlipoca  as  a spider  is 
typical  of  the  god  of  the  dry  season,  or  of  the  dry-rot  pre- 
valent in  that  period  of  the  year.  As  a tiger  he  symbolizes 
the  fierceness  of  the  hurricane,  and  the  tlachtli  game  which 
he  and  Quetzalcoatl  engage  in  is  undoubtedly  symbolic  of 
the  seasonal  strife  between  the  wind-gods. 

DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  CONCEPTION  OF 
QUETZALCOATL 

Summarizing  the  myths  relating  to  Quetzalcoatl  we  find  : 

(1)  That  all  of  them  have  their  origin  in  or  refer  back  to 
an  original  nature-myth,  in  which  Quetzalcoatl,  the  trade- 
wind,  is,  at  the  end  of  the  rainy  season,  regarded  as  driven 
from  the  Mexican  Plateau  by  Tezcatlipoca  (Ilurakan)  in  his 
guise  of  the  monsoon,  or  hurricane. 

(2)  That  this  myth  in  the  first  place  became  confounded 
with  traditions  of  the  Toltec  civilization,  naturally  enough, 
as  that  civilization  was  the  direct  outcome  of  the  agricultural 
wealth  stimulated  by  the  god  representing  the  trade-wind. 

(3)  That  it  seems  to  have  been  associated  with  a myth 
relating  to  the  fountain  of  youth,  that  is,  the  fountain 
in  which  the  refreshing  and  revivifying  rains  were  stored,  to 
which  Quetzalcoatl  must  return  for  rejuvenation  and  a fresh 
rain-supply. 

(4)  That  the  conception  of  the  god  Quetzalcoatl  became 
humanized  in  the  light  of  the  agricultural  and  other 
manifestations  of  Toltec  culture,  thus  bringing  about  the 

1 See  my  article  on  these  books  in  vol.  iii  of  Hastings’  Encyclopaedia  of 
Religion  and  Ethics. 


ATTRIBUTES  OF  QUETZALCOATL 


143 


idea  of  his  existence  as  a priest-king, and  culminating  in  the 
establishment  of  a line  of  priestly  rulers  bearing  his  name, 
which  endured  as  long  as  Mexican  civilization. 

(5)  Out  of  these  conceptions  there  naturally  arose  other 
related  ideas,  as  those  of  : 

(a)  Quetzalcoatl  as  inventor  of  the  tonalamatl,  the  instru- 
ment by  which  the  festal  days  of  the  rain-cult  were  originally 
noted,  but  which  on  the  adoption  of  the  solar  calendar  as 
time-count  degenerated  into  what  may  be  regarded  as  an 
astrological  table. 

( b ) The  lunar  basis  upon  which  the  tonalamatl  was  founded 
connected  Quetzalcoatl  with  the  moon.1 

(c)  Regarded  as  inventor  of  the  tonalamatl,  he  gained  a 
reputation  as  the  possessor  of  profound  hieratic  wisdom,  and 
came  to  be  looked  upon  as  the  magician  or  sage  par  excellence, 
the  patron  of  education,  the  rain-maker  who  knew  pre- 
cisely when  the  blood  shed  in  penance  should  be  spent  in 
order  that  it  might  return  to  the  soil  of  Anahuac  in  an 
abundant  rainfall. 

(d)  Quetzalcoatl  as  the  god  of  wind  was  also  regarded  as 
the  breath  of  life,  a phenomenon  encountered  in  many 
mythologies,  and  therefore  came  to  be  conceived  as  the 
agency  by  w'hich  souls  were  originally  placed  in  human 
bodies.  From  this,  too,  we  may  argue  his  appearance  as  a 
creator,  or  cosmic  deity,  although  it  may  have  been  in  his 
character  as  fertilizer  that  he  came  to  be  regarded  in  this 
light. 

(e)  Quetzalcoatl  is  the  great  penitent,  the  supreme  pro- 
tagonist of  the  penitential  system,  because  without  the 
blood  spent  in  penitential  exercise  no  rain  might  fall.  The 
secondary  character  of  this  conception  is  probable. 

(/)  Quetzalcoatl  seems  at  a later  date  to  have  been 
regarded  as  the  god  of  the  four  quarters  of  the  compass,  a 
conception  of  him  indubitably  evolved  from  his  status  as  a 
wind-god.  I think  I also  perceive  signs  that  from  this  latter 

1 This,  too,  accounts  for  his  identification  with  the  planet  Venus,  which 
also  had  a calendric  connexion,  and  therefore  as  the  herald  of  the  dawn,  and 
the  child  of  the  virgin  goddess  Chiraalman  or  Chalchihuitlicuo  in  her  guise 
as  Moon-goddoss. 


144 


THE  GREAT  GODS 


idea  was  further  evolved  a conception  of  him  as  god  of  the 
four  elements — fire,  air,  earth,  and  water.  He  is  the  fire  and 
the  flint,  because  of  the  lightning  which  in  Mexico  accom- 
panies the  fall  of  the  trade-wind  rain.  He  is  the  air  in  his 
role  of  Wind-god,  and  as  such  is  symbolized  by  the  bird,  the 
natural  inhabitant  of  the  air,  the  beak  of  which  he  uses  as 
a funnel  from  which  to  expel  the  wind.  He  is  earth,  and, 
his  myth  says,  a builder  of  subterranean  houses,  and  some- 
times bears  the  earth-staff  of  agriculture.1  He  is  water,  or 
rain,  in  which  guise  he  is  typified  by  the  feathered  snake. 

This  conception  of  him,  evidently  strongly  sophisticated 
by  priestly  theological  science,  is  illustrated  in  the  Codex 
Magliabecchiano,  where  he  is  represented  on  one  sheet  along 
with  Tezcatlipoca,  Tlaloc,  and  Uitzilopochtli.  This  group, 
in  my  opinion,  represents  the  four  elements  : Fire  (Uitzilo- 
pochtli), as  possessor  of  the  tlachinalli  symbol,  a hieroglyph 
for  water  and  fire,  and  as  sun-god  ; Air  (Quetzalcoatl)  ; 
Earth  (Tezcatlipoca),  who  as  Tepeyollotl  was  an  earth- 
deity;  and  Water  (Tlaloc).  The  picture  may  also  be 
descriptive  of  the  four  points  of  the  compass  over  which  he 
rules.  But  above  and  beyond  this,  as  Seler  has  shown,  it 
implies  that  these  deities  were  later  embodied  in  the  idea  of 
Quetzalcoatl.  When  Cortez,  coming  from  the  East,  landed 
at  Vera  Cruz,  the  Mexicans  naturally  believed  that  Quetzal- 
coatl had  returned,  and  Motecuhzoma  sent  him  as  an  offering 
“ the  dress  appropriate  to  him,”  four  kinds  of  attire,  the 
ceremonial  costumes  of  Uitzilopochtli,  Tezcatlipoca,  Tlaloc, 
and  Quetzalcoatl. 

ETYMOLOGY 

There  but  remains  the  etymology  of  Quetzalcoatl’s  name. 
It  is  compounded  of  the  element  quetzalli  and  coatl.  The 
first  denotes  the  bright  green  tail-feathers  of  the  quetzal 
bird,  and  coatl  = “ snake,”  so  that  the  whole  implies 
“ feathered  snake.”  The  generally  accepted  belief  is  that 

1 Votan  was  likewise  a builder  of  subterranean  houses  and  was  worshipped 
in  caves.  The  god  of  the  rain-cult  is,  indeed,  regarded  as  master  of  the  streams 
which  flow  under  the  earth.  See  Brinton,  Nagualism,  p.  41. 


QUETZALCOATL’S  NAME 


145 


this  name  applies  to  the  rain-bearing  clouds  which  accompany 
the  trade-wind,  although  others  have  seen  in  it  a description 
of  the  rain  itself,  and  still  others  the  ripples  made  by  wind 
on  water.  But  quetzal  in  a secondary  sense  means  “ precious,” 
and  coatl  is  capable  of  being  translated  “ twin.”  The 
Mexicans  themselves,  however,  frequently  drew  and  sculp- 
tured the  god  as  a feathered  serpent,  although  this  may 
easily  have  possessed  a merely  pictographic  significance.  In 
any  case,  after  prolonged  consideration  on  the  etymology  of 
the  name,  I do  not,  so  far,  see  any  reason  to  quarrel  with  the 
currently  accepted  rendering  of  it. 


10 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  CREATIVE  DEITIES 

TONACATECUTLI— TONACACIUATL  (TONACATE- 
CUTLI  = “ LORD  OF  OUR  SUBSISTENCE”) 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico  ; originally  Atlantic  coastlands,  the 

Olmeca  lands  and  Tlaxcallan.  Anciently  Toltec. 

Minor  Names  : 

Ometecutli  = “ Twofold  lord.” 

Tlachinale  = “ Lord  of  Creation.” 

Tlatecque  = “ Lord  of  the  Earthly  World.” 

Teotlale  = “ Lord  of  the  Steppe.” 

Matlaua  = “ Lord  of  the  Net.” 

Topeua  = “ Lord  of  the  Mountains.” 

Tloque  Nahuaque  = “ Lord  of  the  Close  Vicinity.” 

Relationship  : Father  of  Quetzalcoatl. 

Calendar  Places  : Ruler  of  the  first  day,  ce  cipactli,  of  the  first 

week  and  of  the  fourth  day-hour. 

Compass  Direction  : West. 

Symbol  : The  human  pair  beneath  the  coverlet. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Vaticanus  A.  — In  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A Tonacate- 
cutli’s  body-paint  is  red  and  pink.  His  headdress  is  bound 
by  a fillet  richly  encrusted  with  torquoises,  having  in  front 
the  conventional  bird’s  head  which  is  so  frequently  en- 
countered in  representations  of  the  Mexican  gods  in  the 
codices.  He  wears  the  nasal  ornament  of  serpentine  shape 
peculiar  to  the  octli-  or  drink-gods,  as  to  some  of  the  deities 
of  fertility,  and  his  fruitful  or  life-giving  nature  is  symbolized 
by  a foot-stool  composed  of  maize  ears. 

Codex  Borgia. — In  the  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  61,  lower  half) 
the  lower  portion  of  his  face  is  painted  red,  but  its  upper 

146 


T0NACAC1UATL 


147 


part,  as  well  as  the  rest  of  his  body  which  is  visible,  is  coloured 
yellow.  On  the  cheek  is  seen  a rectangular  surface  divided 
into  compartments,  each  of  which  is  tinted  a different 
colour,  the  distinctive  painting  of  the  maize-gods,  which,  it 
is  believed,  symbolizes  the  maize-field  with  its  many  hues. 
A “ gobber  ” tooth  hangs  from  his  mouth  as  a sign  of  great 
age,  for  as  creator  he  was  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  venerable 
among  the  gods.  Around  his  forehead  is  a head-band 
enriched  with  precious  stones,  which  recalls  that  frequently 
worn  by  the  Sun-god.  His  necklet  consists  of  a casket  of 
jewels,  with  lid  and  feet,  on  which  is  represented  the  symbol 
of  the  chalchihuitl  jewel.1  On  sheet  GO  Tonacaciuatl,  the 
female  form  of  this  deity,  is  depicted  in  the  act  of  handing 
Tonacatecutli  a flower,  symbolic  of  life  or  blood.  Above  this 
figure  is  the  picture  of  a red  snake,  also  symbolizing  blood. 
The  god  wears  a jaguar-skin  and  the  goddess  an  eagle’s, 
thus  illustrating  their  patronage  of  the  military  orders  who 
wore  those  dresses.  (For  similar  readings,  see  Codex  Laud, 
34-5  K).  In  sheet  57  (lower  right-hand  corner)  he  is  repre- 
sented as  wearing  a beard  of  black  eagle-feathers. 

Codex  V aticanus  B. — In  Codex  Vaticanus  B (sheet  87)  Tona- 
catecutli is  represented  with  Quetzalcoatl’s  head  and  neck 
ornaments,  combined  with  the  jewelled  fillet  and  bird’s  head 
on  forehead.  He  wears  a long  beard  reaching  to  the  feet. 

TONACACIUATL  = “ LADY  OF  OUR  SUBSISTENCE” 

Minor  Names  : 

Omeciuatl  = “ Twofold  Lady.” 

Citlalinicue  = “ Starry  Skirt.” 

Calendar  Place  : Same  as  that  of  Tonacatecutli. 

Compass  Direction  : Same  as  that  of  Tonacatecutli. 

Symbol  : Same  as  that  of  Tonacatecutli. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

General . — In  Codex  Fejbrvary- Mayer  (sheet  10)  the  drawn- 
in  angle  of  the  mouth  and  the  female  figure  point  to  the 
inference  that  here  is  depicted  Tonacaciuatl,  who  is  identified 

1 A generic  name  for  green  precious  or  semi-precious  stones — turquoise, 
jadeite,  nephrite,  emerald,  etc. 


148 


THE  CREATIVE  DEITIES 


by  the  interpreters  with  Xochiquetzal.  In  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis  and  Codex  Vaticanus  A we  find  her  standing  in 
front  of  the  male  creative  god  Tonacatecutli.  In  the  latter 
MS.  the  first  interpreter  calls  her  Tonagacigua,  and  the 
third  Xochiquetzal,  Oxomoco,  and  Chicomecohuatl.  The 
picture  shown  under  the  nineteenth  week  of  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis  pictures  her  with  precisely  the  same  dress  and 
emblems  as  Xochiquetzal  (q.v.). 

MYTHS 

These  deities  were  identified  by  the  Mexicans  with  the 
Creator,  the  Tloque  Nahuaque,  of  whom  almost  every  one  of 
the  post-Conquest  Spanish  writers  speaks.  Indeed  the  Codex 
Telleriano-Remensis  expressly  identifies  them  with  the  creative 
force.  The  passage  runs  : “ All  those  epithets  (God,  Lord, 
Creator)  they  bestowed  on  their  god  Tonacatecutli,  who, 
according  to  their  account,  was  the  god  who  created  the 
world  ; and  they  painted  him  alone  with  a crown  as  lord  of 
all.  They  never  offered  sacrifices  to  this  god,  for  they  said 
that  he  did  not  regard  them.”  Of  the  female  deity  the 
Codex  Vaticanus  says  : “ Tonacacigua  was  the  wife  of  Tona- 
catecutle  ; for,  as  we  have  observed,  although  their  gods 
were  not,  as  they  affirm,  united  together  for  matrimonial 
purposes,  still  they  assigned  to  each  a goddess  as  a com- 
panion. They  called  her  by  another  name,  Suchiquetzal 
and  Chicomecoual,  which  means  Seven  Serpents,  for  they 
say  that  she  was  the  cause  of  sterility,  famine,  and  all  the 
miseries  of  life.”  1 

In  further  descriptive  passages  concerning  Tonacatecutli 
the  same  Codex  says  : “ This  is  the  representation  of  Tonacate- 
cotle,  which  name  signifies  the  Lord  of  our  Bodies  ; others 
say  that  it  means  the  First  Man,  or  perhaps  it  means  that 
the  first  man  was  so  called.”  “ These  are  the  figures  which 
have  been  mentioned  ; and  the  first  is  that  of  their  greatest 
god  Tonacatecotle.  It  represented  the  first  god  under  whom 
they  affirm  was  the  dominion  of  the  world  ; who,  when  it 
appeared  good  to  him,  breathed  and  divided  the  waters  of 

1 In  Kingsborough,  Antiquities  of  Mexico,  vol.  vi. 


SONG  OF  THE  CREATORS 


149 


the  heavens  and  the  earth,  which  at  first  were  all  contused 
together,  and  disposed  of  them  as  they  now  are  ; and  accord- 
ingly they  called  him  Lord  of  our  Bodies  ; and  also  of 
abundance,  who  bestowed  everything  upon  them  ; and  on 
this  account  they  paint  him  alone  with  a crown.  They 
called  him  besides  Seven  Flowers,  for  they  say  that  he  dis- 
poses of  the  principalities  of  the  earth.  He  had  no  temple, 
nor  did  they  offer  sacrifices  to  him,  for  they  say  that  he  did 
not  require  them,  as  if  on  account  of  his  superior  majesty.  . . . 
They  say  that  Tonacatecotle  presided  over  the  thirteen  signs 
which  are  here  marked  (the  day-signs  of  the  lonalamatl,  q.v.). 
Those  above  denote  the  thirteen  causes  or  influences  of  the 
sky  which  are  under  subjection  to  him,  and  the  others  below 
are  the  thirteen  signs  of  their  superstition  and  sorcery. 
This  man  and  woman  represent  the  first  pair  who  existed  in 
the  world  ; their  names  are  Huehue  (very  old  ones).  Between 
them  is  placed  a knife  or  razor  and  an  arrow  above  each  of 
their  heads,  typifying  death,  as  in  them  death  originated.” 

“ They  called  this  god  Tonacatecotli  and  by  another  name 
Citallatonalli  1 ; and  they  said  that  he  was  the  constellation 
which  appears  by  night  in  the  sky,  St.  James’s  or  the  Milky 
Way.  They  paint  these  figures  and  all  the  others  which 
follow,  each  of  them  in  its  own  manner  ; because  as  they 
considered  them  their  deities,  each  had  its  peculiar  festival. 
It  was  necessary  to  wear  in  these  festivals  the  habit  of  the 
god.” 

The  Ilistoria  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sits  Pinturas  regards 
these  deities  as  appearing  at  the  commencement  of  creation, 
but  says  nothing  of  their  relations  to  the  precise  creative  act. 

The  Anales  de  Quauhtitlan  says  of  them  : 

And  they  say 

that  in  the  inner  heaven 

he  [Quetzalcoatl]  dedicated  a cult 

and  called  on  them  : 

her  with  the  star-studded  robe,  together  with  the  astral  Sun-god. 
the  mistress  of  our  flesh,  the  lord  of  our  flesh, 
who  is  clothed  in  charcoal,  clothed  in  blood, 
who  giveth  food  to  the  earth  ; 


1 On  this  identification  see  also  Torquemada,  bk.  vi,  c.  xix. 


150 


THE  CREATIVE  DEITIES 


and  ho  cried  aloft 

— as  they  (the  old  people)  were  informed — 
to  the  Omeyocan, 

to  the  heaven  lying  above  the  nine  that  are  bound  together. 

And — as  they  learnt — 

those  having  their  abode  there, 

those  he  called  upon,  those  he  worshipped. 

(See  also  chapter  on  Cosmogony  for  further  mythical 
material  relating  to  these  deities.) 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

In  examining  the  characteristics  of  these  deities  we  find  : 

(1)  That  they  were  among  the  oldest  of  the  Mexican  divini- 
ties. Tonacatecutli  is  called,  among  other  names,  “ Lord 
of  the  Steppe,”  1 which  does  not  necessarily  indicate  that  he 
was  a deity  of  the  Chichimec  or  hunting  tribes,  who  from 
generation  to  generation  raided  the  Mexican  valley,  but  may 
apply  to  his  stellar  or  heavenly  significance.  Reference  is 
also  made  in  the  Anales  de  Qiiauhtitlan  to  the  circumstance 
that  he  and  his  female  counterpart  were  gods  of  the  ancient 
Toltecs,  and  that  their  cult  was  founded  by  Quetzalcoatl,  the 
typical  Toltec  priest-king. 

(2)  That  these  gods  were  regarded  by  the  Mexican  priest- 
hood in  more  modern  times  at  least,  as  abstractions,  ideal 
beings  who  arose  out  of  philosophic  speculation.  That  they 
had  become  rather  neglected  in  the  popular  Mexican  faith  is 
clear  from  the  circumstance  that  they  had  no  temples  and 
that  no  offerings  were  made  them.  Tonacatecutli  repre- 
sented, indeed,  that  great  invisible  and  intangible  figure 
which  at  all  times  and  in  all  religions  has  loomed  behind 
most  pantheons — the  great  god  behind  the  gods — the  prin- 
ciple of  causality,  that  first  cause  beyond  which  the  specula- 
tions of  theology  cannot  proceed. 

(3)  They  presided  over  the  food  supply.  Although  other 
deities  occupied  the  positions  of  maize  and  vegetable  gods, 
the  creative  deities  were  in  the  ultimate  the  great  givers  of 
all  food.  Thus  they  were  designated  “ Lords  of  Food 
Supplies  ” and  “ Lords  of  Superabundance.” 

1 Codex  Telleriano-Remensis. 


SKY-FATHER  AND  EARTH-MOTHER 


151 


(4)  They  must  be  regarded  as  the  direct  creators  of  the 
spirit  of  man.  To  the  Mexican  man  flesh  was  merely  maize 
in  another  form.  But  apart  from  this  conception  the  pair 
typified  the  first  human  couple,  and  as  such  they  are  repre- 
sented in  all  the  MSS.  lying  side  by  side  and  cross-legged 
under  a blanket,  in  the  attitude  of  procreation.  They  are, 
indeed,  the  great  initiators  of  life,  and  must  be  comprehended 
as  sending  the  human  soul  to  occupy  the  body  made  by  human 
procreation,  giving  warmth  and  breath  to  the  infant  before 
birth.1 

(5)  They  commence  the  series  of  twenty  day-signs,  and 
this  alone  symbolizes  their  creative  and  original  nature. 

(6)  They  represent  the  sign  cipactli , the  animal  from  which 
the  earth  was  made. 

(7)  They  are  gods  of  the  Omeyocan,  the  highest  or  thir- 
teenth heaven,  which  fact  further  illustrates  their  supreme 
character. 

CONCLUSIONS 

From  these  facts  we  may  be  justified  in  concluding  : 

(1)  That  in  the  most  early  times  Tonacatecutli  and  his 
consort  typified  the  father-sky  and  mother-earth  respectively, 
but  that  this  aspect  of  them  had  been  forgotten  and  they 
came  to  have  a purely  abstract  creative  significance  for  both 
priests  and  people.  That  Tonacaciuatl  originally  represented 
the  earth  there  is  no  doubt,  and  her  identification  with  Xochi- 
quetzal  and  Chicomecoatl  alone  would  show  this  to  be  so. 
Again,  the  association  with  the  sign  cipactli  proves  the  con- 
nexion of  one  of  the  divine  pair  with  the  earth,  and  from 
what  has  been  said  regarding  this  sign  in  the  introduction, 
and  by  the  constant  association  of  goddesses  in  the  Mexican 
mind  with  the  terrestrial  sphere,  it  is  plain  that  Tonacatecutli, 
her  male  counterpart,  is  not  likely  to  have  represented  it  in 
early  times.  The  suggestion  that  he  symbolizes  the  sky  is 
perhaps  assisted  by  the  nature  of  his  abode,  the  uppermost 
heaven,  and  from  his  close  identification  with  Citlallatonac, 


1 Seler,  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  p.  132. 


152 


THE  CREATIVE  DEITIES 


the  god  of  the  night  heaven,  who  was  supposed  to  represent 
the  Milky  Way. 

(2)  That  in  later  times  the  early  concepts  of  these  divinities 
became  fused  almost  into  one,  and  that  in  some  measure 
they  had  come  to  be  regarded  as  androgynous.  This  view 
may  be  traversed  by  the  circumstance  that  they  are  fre- 
quently represented  separately,  but  on  the  other  hand  their 
names  appear  as  one  in  the  form  Tonacatecutli-Tonacaciuatl 
in  many  passages.  The  same  may  be  posited  of  their  counter- 
parts in  the  Quiche  Popol  Vnh,  Xpiyacoc  and  Xmucane.1 

Tonacatecutli  and  his  spouse  are  to  be  regarded  as  the 
parents  of  Quetzalcoatl,  but  this  is  probably  a theogonic 
myth  of  late  origin,  brought  about  by  the  constant  association 
of  Quetzalcoatl  with  the  creative  gods  as  deities  of  the 
ancient  Toltecs,  and  the  frequent  references  to  him  as  the 
founder  of  their  cult. 

Ixtlilxochitl  states  in  his  fourth  Relation  that  Tonacate- 
cutli and  his  wife  were  the  chief  gods  of  the  Toltecs,  who 
represented  them  as  the  sun  and  the  moon,  and  he  goes  on  to 
say  that  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  criminals  were  sacri- 
ficed to  them  by  a method  called  Telimonamiquian,  “ which 
is  to  say  grinding  between  the  stones.”  Two  great  stones, 
he  says,  were  balanced  opposite  each  other,  and  the  victim 
was  crushed  between  them  as  they  fell — the  slain  man  thus 
representing  the  corn-spirit,  or,  indeed,  the  corn  itself  in  the 
process  of  being  ground. 

1 Spence,  Popol  Vuh.  London,  1908. 


CHAPTER  V 


DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH 
PROPER 

INTRODUCTORY 

SO  numerous  were  the  manifestations  and  variants  of  the 
Earth-goddess  conceived  by  the  Nahua  or  adopted 
into  their  pantheon,  that  this  has  been  the  cause  of 
considerable  misconception  on  the  part  of  students  of 
Mexican  religion,  who  have  confounded  them  in  a manner 
which  in  the  circumstances  is  scarcely  surprising.  An 
attempt  will  be  made  here  to  provide  the  reader  with  a list 
of  the  most  important  of  these  deities,  briefly  and  barely  out- 
lining their  various  origins  and  attributes,  in  order  that  he 
may  be  the  better  able  to  comprehend  what  follows  when 
we  come  to  discuss  them  more  fully. 

Chicomecoatl  (Seven  Serpents) — the  Mexican  name  of 
the  Earth-goddess  and  that  of  the  seventh  day  of  the  seventh 
week  of  the  tonalamatl.  She  was  probably  of  Toltec  origin. 
The  third  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A identifies  her 
with  Xochiquetzal,  and,  perhaps  more  correctly,  with 
Xumoco  and  Tonacacigua  or  Tonacaciuatl.  She  had  two 
temples  dedicated  to  her,  the  chicome  iteopan  and  the  cinte- 
opan,  and  seems  to  have  become  a variant  of  Tonacaciuatl 
on  the  adoption  of  an  agricultural  basis  of  existence. 

Tlazolteotl,  Tlaelquani,  Teteo  innan  or  Toci — an  earth- 
goddess  whose  worship  had  its  origin  among  the  tribes  of  the 
Atlantic  seaboard,  where  maize  grew  abundantly.  She 
possessed  warlike  propensities,  as  became  a goddess  to  whom 
human  sacrifice  was  much  in  vogue,  and  the  myth  of  her 
impregnation  by  Uitzilopochtli  was  enacted  at  the  ochpaniztli 
festival  in  August,  typifying,  perhaps,  the  impregnation  of 

153 


154  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


the  “ earth-mother  ” by  the  “ sky-father.”  As  Ixcuine  she 
represented  a plurality  of  goddesses.  Seler  1 believes  that 
Chicomecoatl  represents  the  young  maize  ear,  and  Tlazol- 
teotl,  the  ripe  ear  of  the  plant. 

Cihuacoatl  (Serpent  Woman) — an  earth-goddess  of  Xochi- 
milco  and  Colhuacan. 

Coatlicue  or  Coatlantonan  (Serpent  Skirt) — a Mexican 
earth-goddess,  mother  of  Uitzilopochtli. 

Xochiquetzal — originally  a mountain  goddess  of  the 
Tlalhuica.  An  earth-and-maize  goddess  as  well  as  a deity 
of  flowers  and  vegetation. 

Xilonen — originally  a maize-goddess  of  the  Huichol  tribes. 
She  represented  the  young  maize-plant. 

Cinteotl  (Maize-god) — son  of  Tlazolteotl,  originally  a god 
of  the  peoples  of  the  Atlantic  seaboard.  He  is  occasionally 
alluded  to  as  a female  deity,  but  is  always  male  in  the  MSS. 
of  the  Borgia  group,  executed  by  a people  of  Nahua  speech 
dwelling  in  the  south.  He  is  the  equivalent  of  Xochipilli 
and  had  a separate  temple,  the  cinteopan. 

Xipe— an  earth-god  of  the  Teotitlan  district,  a god  of 
spring  vegetation.  His  temples  were  called  yopico.  His 
great  festival  was  the  Tlacaxipeuliztli , or  “ flaying  of  men.” 

Only  three  of  these  deities,  Tlazolteotl,  Xipe,  and  Xochi- 
quetzal, appear  as  rulers  of  one  or  other  of  the  twenty 
day-signs  of  the  tonalamatl.  But  Cinteotl  figures  in  the 
ochpaniztli  feast  and  appears  as  one  of  the  “ Lords  of  the 
Night.” 

These  criteria  are  perhaps  sufficient  to  identify  these  figures 
as  separate  divinities.  We  find  in  Sahagun  that  Chicome- 
coatl, Cinteotl,  and  Xipe  had  separate  temples  of  their  own. 
In  several  of  the  rituals  of  the  great  festivals,  however,  the 
cults  of  Tlazolteotl,  Chicomecoatl,  and  Cinteotl  appear  to 
have  been  very  closely  interwoven,  and  this  leads  me  to 
suspect  that  the  worship  of  the  old  Toltec  goddess  Chicome- 
coatl was  in  process  of  fusion  with  that  of  the  “ immigrant  ” 
Tlazolteotl  at  the  period  of  the  Conquest.  Xilonen,  too, 
according  to  Sahagun,  had  a separate  festival  in  her  honour, 

1 Tonalamatl  of  the  Aubin-Goupil  Collection,  1900-1901. 


RELATIONSHIPS  OF  THE  EARTH-DEITIES  155 


the  uei  tecuilhuitl.  From  all  this  and  from  considerations 
still  to  be  advanced  we  may,  perhaps,  be  justified  in  assum- 
ing : 

(1)  That  at  the  period  of  the  Conquest  the  cults  of  Tlazol- 
teotl,  Chicomecoatl,  and  Cinteotl  were  very  naturally  in  pro- 
cess of  becoming  amalgamated,  the  worship  of  the  two  god- 
desses, Mexican  and  alien,  presenting  many  features  in 
common. 

(2)  That  Xochiquetzal,  originally  the  goddess  of  the  Tlal- 
huica,  was  regarded  more  properly  as  the  goddess  of  flowers 
and  of  the  spring  florescence,  a hypothesis  which  is  upheld  by 
her  myths.  Her  equation  with  Tonacaciuatl  appears  to 
have  been  a later  concept,  due  to  the  connexion  of  both  with 
the  earth. 

(3)  That  the  Huichol  goddess  Xilonen  came  to  symbolize 
for  the  Nahua  the  maize  plant  in  its  early  stages  of  growth, 
and  in  that  respect  resembles  Cinteotl. 

(4)  That  the  cult  of  the  southern  god  Xipe,  the  grain-deity 
of  a related  people,  had  made  great  headway  among  the 
Nahua  of  Mexico-Tenochtitlan. 

(5)  It  follows  from  these  conclusions  that  only  one  of  these 
deities  of  growth— Coatlicue — was  of  Nahua  origin,  all  the 
others  being  gods  of  the  aboriginal  or  settled  peoples.  The 
Chichimec  Nahua,  a hunting  people,  possessing  no  official 
grain-goddess  of  their  own,  would  naturally  come  to  worship 
these  on  their  adoption  of  an  agricultural  mode  of  life.  As 
most  of  these  forms  hailed  from  districts  of  considerable 
cultural  antiquity,  I believe  their  worship  to  have  been  of 
long  duration  in  the  land,  not  much  less  ancient,  indeed,  than 
the  cult  of  Tlaloc. 

It  is  not  claimed  for  these  conclusions  that  they  are  more 
than  approximate.  The  data  relative  to  these  deities  is  much 
too  complex  to  permit  of  any  more  precise  or  dogmatic  treat- 
ment, in  fact  at  one  time  or  another  there  was  identification 
between  them  all ; but  with  the  above  attempt  at  simplifica- 
tion in  view  we  shall  now  endeavour  to  present  the  reader 
with  a detailed  account  of  each  of  these  and  other  less  im- 
portant divinities  who  were  regarded  as  in  any  way  connected 


156  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


with  the  personification  of  the  earth  or  the  growth  of  the 
crops,  their  festivals  and  ritual. 

The  earth-deities  seem  to  have  been  prophetic  and  divina- 
tory  and  to  have  been  connected  with  medicine,  like  similar 
European  and  Asiatic  goddesses.  Some  of  them,  like  Itz- 
papalotl,  share  the  butterfly  symbol  with  the  gods  of  fire, 
with  whom  they  are  frequently  connected.  They  are  also 
closely  associated  with  the  deer,  a fertility  animal,  and  the 
eagle,  the  sun-bird,  and  their  victims  were,  like  those  of  the 
sun  and  war  deities,  decked  with  eagle-down. 

TLAZOLTEOTL  = “ GODDESS  OF  DIRT” 

Territory  : Huaxtec,  Mixtec,  Olmec. 

Minor  Names  : 

Tlaelquani  = “ Filth-eater.” 

Chicunaui  acatl  = “ Nine  Reed.” 

Teteo  Innan  = “ Mother  of  the  Gods.” 

Chiquacen  acatl  = “ Six  Reed.” 

Toci  = “ Our  Grandmother.” 

Naui  tecpatl  = “ Four  Flint  Knife.” 

Cocauic  Xochitla  = “ Yellow  Bloom.” 

Tlalli  iyallo  = “ Heart  of  the  Earth.” 

Iztac  Xochitla  = “ White  Bloom.” 

Ixcuine  = “ Four  Faces.” 

Tonana  Teumechaue  = “ Our  mother,  the  goddess  of  the  thigh- 
skin  face-painting.” 

Calendar  Places : 

Ruler  of  the  fourteenth  day,  ocelotl,  of  the  thirteenth  week,  ceolin. 
Seventh  of  the  nine  lords  of  the  night. 

Compass  Direction  : West. 

Festivals  : Ochpaniztli  (“  Feast  of  Brooms  ”)  in  the  eleventh  month. 
Symbols  : A man  eating  excrement  (“  Dirt-eater  ”)  ; a broom. 
Relationships  : Mother  of  Centeotl  ; one  of  the  Tzitzimime. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  74  : Here  Tlazolteotl  is  depicted 
as  naked,  and  accompanied  by  a snake.  A patch  of  rubber 
appears  near  the  mouth,  and  her  head  is  bound  by  a fillet 
of  unspun  cotton.  Behind  the  neck  a feather  ornament 
is  seen,  made  of  the  blue  plumage  of  the  quail,  and  she  also 
wears  the  golden  nasal  Huaxtec  ornament  usually  seen  in 


lofil 


(From  Codex  Telleriano-Hemensis,  17  Verso.) 
FORMS  OF  TLAZOLTEOTL. 


(From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  55.) 


(157 


INSIGNIA  OF  TLAZOLTEOTL 


157 


connexion  with  the  octli-gods.  In  the  Codex  Vciticanus  B 
her  naked  body  is  painted  white,  with  yellow  longitudinal 
stripes,  and  she  has  the  bifurcated  nose-ornament  of  Xipe. 
Significantly,  perhaps,  the  shape  of  her  eye  recalls  that  of 
the  god  of  flaying,  whose  eye  is  usually  a mere  slit  in  the 
flayed  human  skin  which  he  wears,  and  through  the  mask 
of  which  he  is  supposed  to  be  looking.  She  wears  the  cotton 
fillet  and  ear-plug  typical  of  her. 

Sahagun  MS. — In  this  place  she  has  a disk  of  liquid  rubber 
on  the  face,  with  which  substance  her  mouth  is  also  painted, 
an  elaborate  cotton  headdress,  crowned  with  feathers,  a 
tunic  of  sac  shape  with  a fringe  divided  into  compartments, 
a skirt  with  bands  joined  by  diagonal  lines,  and  she  holds 
in  her  right  hand  the  broom  symbolic  of  her  feast,  and  in 
her  left  a shield  decorated  with  four  concentric  circles. 

General. — In  the  tonalamatl  of  the  Aubin-Goupil  collec- 
tion, wherever  she  is  depicted  as  seventh  of  the  nine  lords 
of  the  night,  her  face  is  white,  its  upper  portion  being  sur- 
rounded by  a yellow  band.  In  the  Codex  Borbonicus  she 
is  occasionally  painted  all  yellow  or  all  white,  and  this  yellow 
colour  symbolizes  that  of  the  ripe  maize  ear.  In  the  song 
about  her  given  by  Sahagun,  we  observe  that  she  is  alluded 
to  as  “ the  yellow  blossom  ” and  the  “ white  blossom,” 
otherwise  the  yellow  or  white  maize — the  maize  at  different 
stages  of  its  growth. 

Another  of  her  distinguishing  characteristics,  as  has  been 
remarked,  is  the  black  colouring  in  the  region  of  the  mouth, 
which  frequently  extends  to  and  includes  the  tip  of  the  nose 
and  chin  and,  as  Sahagun  states,  this  was  effected  with  liquid 
rubber,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Fire-god.  The  small  patch  or 
circle  on  her  cheek  is  also  commented  upon  by  Sahagun, 
who  says,  “ a hole  has  she  placed  on  her  cheek  ” — the 
“ hole  ” being  probably  a disk  of  rubber  with  a perforated 
centre.  As  an  alternative  to  this  we  find  in  Codex  Borgia 
two  broad  horizontal  lines  and  in  Codex  Borbonicus  several 
short,  vertical  black  lines  below  the  eye,  and  it  would  seem 
that  the  concentric  circle  on  the  shield  of  the  goddess  in 
the  Sahagun  MS.  has  the  same  meaning — that  is,  it  is  prob- 


158  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


ably  a symbol  of  sex.1  In  some  representations  her  skirt 
is  covered  with  crescent-shaped  objects  perhaps  typical 
of  her  symbol — excrement. 

When  Tlazolteotl  appears  as  ruler  of  the  thirteenth  week 
she  often  lacks  the  ripe-maize  colour  with  which  she  is 
represented  elsewhere.  Thus  in  Telleriano-Remensis  she  is 
painted  about  the  mouth  with  liquid  rubber,  and  in  Bor- 
bonicus  her  face-paint  is  in  two  colours.  A black  stroke 
is  seen  descending  from  brow  to  nose,  but  she  has  the 
yellow  skin-colour.  In  both  cases  she  is,  like  Xipe,  clothed 
in  the  skin  of  a victim.  In  Telleriano-Remensis  and  the 
Aubin  tonalamatl  her  arms  and  legs  are  powdered  with 
white  chalk  and  small  feathers  are  affixed  to  them,  probably 
with  ulli  gum.  In  Telleriano-Remensis  these  cover  part  of 
her  costume  as  well.  In  this  codex,  too,  her  Huaxtec  nose- 
ornament  is  replaced  by  one  having  a stepped  motif,  or  a 
butterfly  formed  of  the  spotted  feathers  of  the  quail. 

The  cotton  fillet  of  the  goddess  is  worthy  of  further  remark. 
It  is  made  from  the  unspun  produce  of  the  plant,  covers 
the  top  of  the  head  and  reaches  the  shoulders  on  either  side 
of  the  face.  Spindles  are  stuck  into  the  mass,  which  is 
marked  upon  its  surface  with  acute-angled  figures  or  groups 
of  parallel  lines  on  a white  ground,  which  may  be  regarded 
as  hieroglyphic  of  raw  cotton. 

In  certain  of  the  MSS.,  for  example  in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl 
and  in  Telleriano-Remensis,  Tlazolteotl  wears  a feather 
coronal,  which  in  other  codices  takes  the  shape  of  a fan  or 
nape-ring  like  that  frequently  worn  by  Quetzalcoatl.  Occa- 
sionally, too,  it  rises  from  a rubber  ball  which  rests  upon 
the  head.  In  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  68)  the  feathers  are  dark 
in  colour,  but  are  brightened  by  the  red  plumes  which  spring 
from  them  in  turn.  Elsewhere  we  find  white,  brown,  or  yellow 
feathers,  the  latter  prepared  artificially  from  palm-leaves, 
which,  like  the  fan-shaped  ornament  itself,  are  Huaxtec  in 
character.  In  the  picture  in  Borbonicus  of  Tlazolteotl  as 
ruler  of  the  week  ce  olin  (one  reed)  we  see  the  conical  Huaxtec 

1 This  circular  patch  with  the  centro  punched  out  is  worn  by  the  women 
of  more  than  one  Asiatic  country. 


ARROW  SACRIFICE 


159 


hat,  as  worn  by  Quetzalcoatl,  peeping  above  her  cotton 
headdress,  and  the  palm-leaf  plume  rising  from  a feather 
fan,  which  springs  from  a ball  of  rubber.  In  Telleriano- 
Remensis  Tlazolteotl  is  seen  wearing  a string  of  snail-shells 
depending  from  the  waist.  This  is  known  as  citallicue,  or 
“ star-skirt,”  another  Huaxtec  article  of  dress. 

In  none  of  the  representations  alluded  to  was  Tlazolteotl 
pictured  with  the  broom  characteristic  of  her  and  of  her 
feast-day,  ochpanitztli  (“when  they  sweep  the  ways”). 
This  was  made  from  hard,  stiff,  pointed  grass,  which  was 
cut  with  sickles  in  the  mountain-forests  of  Popocatepetl.1 
It  was  bound  with  a coloured  leather  strap,  and  the  paper 
which  held  it  together  was  flecked  with  the  V-shaped  cotton 
symbol. 

MYTHS 

Tlazolteotl  is  described  in  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis 
as  “ the  woman  who  sinned  before  the  deluge,  who  was 
the  cause  of  all  evil,  of  all  deceit”  ; but  this  would  appear 
to  be  an  error  for  Ixnextli  or  Xochiquetzal  (q.v.).  The  Anales 
de  Quauhtitlan  says  of  her  : “ In  the  same  year  (8  Rabbit) 
came  the  so-called  Ixcuiname  female  demons  [to  Tollan] 
and,  as  they  say  from  the  reports  of  the  old  people,  they  came 
from  Huaxteca.  And  in  the  place  Cuextecatl  ichocayan 
(“Where  the  Huaxtecs  wreep”)  they  summoned  these 
captives  whom  they  had  taken  in  Huaxteca  and  explained 
to  them  what  was  about  to  be  done,  saying — ‘ We  go  now 
to  Tollan.  We  wish  to  couple  the  earth  with  you,  we  desire 
to  hold  a feast  with  you,  for  till  now  no  battle  offerings 
have  been  made  with  men.  We  wish  to  make  a beginning 
of  it  and  shoot  you  to  death  with  arrows.’  ” 

SACRIFICE  BY  SHOOTING  WITH  ARROWS 

This  indicates  that  the  goddess,  one  of  the  Ixcuiname,  was 
regarded  as  the  inventress  of  that  especial  mode  of  sacrifice 
by  which  the  victim  was  tied  to  a framework  and  shot  to 
death  with  arrows.  We  have  no  classical  statement  that 

1 Sahagun,  Bks.  viii  and  x. 


100  DEITIES  OF  TIIE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


such  a proceeding  took  place  at  her  festival,  however,  but 
it  is  known  that  it  formed  part  of  the  ritual  at  the  festival 
of  Xipe  (q.v.).  The  expression,  “ We  wish  to  couple  the 
earth  with  you,”  when  taken  along  with  the  straddling 
attitude  of  the  victim  on  his  frame,  has  given  rise  to  the 
assumption  1 that  such  a sacrifice  was  intended  to  symbolize 
a sexual  connexion  between  the  victim  and  the  earth  or 
earth-mother.  It  appears  to  me  as  more  probable  that  its 
intention  was  to  draw  down  rain  by  sympathetic  magic, 
the  dropping  blood  from  the  arrow  wounds  symbolizing  the 
rain,  and  the  tear  which  the  victim  sheds  in  the  representa- 
tion of  this  sacrifice  in  the  Codex  Nuttall  and  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis,  combined  with  the  fact  that  such  sacrifices  are 
supposed  to  have  been  made  in  years  of  drought,  strengthens 
my  belief  in  the  soundness  of  this  theory. 

Ixcuine  means  “ four-faced,”  and  may  apply  to  the  circum- 
stance that  ancient  idols  of  Tlazolteotl  were,  like  those  of 
Janus,  provided  with  more  than  one  face,  so  that  they  might 
look  upon  every  direction  whence  the  rain  might  come. 
Later,  however,  the  Ixcuiname  were  regarded  as  a fourfold 
manifestation  of  Tlazolteotl  and  as  personifying  four  sisters 
of  different  age,  Tiacapan,  Teicu,  Tlaco  and  Xocoyotzin, 
who  “ represented  the  carnal  passions.”  2 

HYMN 

A song  in  the  Sahagun  MS.  relating  to  Tlazolteotl  is  as 
follows  : 

“ The  yellow  blossom  has  flowered.  She,  our  mother,  with  the  thigh-skin 
of  the  goddess  painted  upon  her  face,  came  out  of  Tamoanchan.  The  white 
blossom  has  burst  open,  she  our  mother,”  etc.3 

This  of  course  symbolizes  the  yellow  and  white  maize. 
The  thigh-skin  of  the  goddess  “ is  the  mask  cut  from  the 

1 By  Seler,  in  Commentary  on  Aubin  Tonalamatl,  p.  93. 

2 Sahagun,  bk.  i,  c.  xii. 

3 As  regards  these  translations  of  hymns  throughout  the  work,  some  have 
been  translated  by  me  from  the  Mexican  originals,  others  have  been  translated 
from  the  Gorman  of  Seler.  Like  that  authority  I have  not  received  any 
enlightenment  from  Brinton’s  “ translations  ” in  his  Sacred  Chants  of  the 
Ancient  Mexicans. 


TLAZOLTEOTL’S  FESTIVALS 


161 


thigh  of  the  sacrificed  girl  and  worn  by  the  priest  ” (see  “ Festi- 
vals,” infra).  The  statement  that  Tlazolteotl  came  out  of 
Tamoanchan  is  important,  for  another  song  in  the  same 
series  tells  us  that  in  that  paradise  was  born  her  son  Cinteotl, 
the  Maize-god  (q.v.). 

FESTIVALS 

Ochpaniztli. — This,  the  great  festival  of  Tlazolteotl,  was 
held  in  the  opening  of  the  eleventh  Aztec  month,  commencing, 
says  Saliagun,1  about  September  1-ith.  Fifteen  days  before 
the  festival  began,  those  who  were  to  celebrate  it  danced 
the  sacred  dances,  which  they  continued  for  eight  days. 
In  complete  silence  they  ranged  themselves  in  four  lines,  and 
danced  with  their  hands  full  of  flowers,  keeping  time  most 
precisely.  At  the  end  of  eight  days  those  women  who 
practised  medicine,  the  midwives,  leech- women,  and  steam- 
bath  keepers  probably,  divided  themselves  into  two  com- 
panies and  presented  themselves  before  a female  victim  who 
represented  the  goddess  and  who  was  destined  for  sacrifice. 
Their  object  was,  says  Sahagun,  to  amuse  her  and  to  keep 
her  from  pondering  upon  her  fate.  The  victim  herself, 
accompanied  by  three  old  women  called  her  “ mothers,” 
headed  one  of  these  parties,  who  pelted  each  other  with  the 
red  leaves  of  the  cactus  flower.  In  the  whole  performance 
we  can  see  some  such  concept  as  survives  in  a manner  in 
the  modern  “ battle  of  flowers,”  which  in  certain  towns 
in  Southern  France  ushers  in  the  season  of  Lent.  The  victim 
was  then  led  back  to  the  place  of  detention,  and  the  ceremony 
was  repeated  for  several  days  in  succession.  Then  the 
“ mothers  ” who  guarded  her  led  her  through  the  public 
market-place  for  the  last  time,  on  which  occasion  she  sowed 
maize  on  every  side,  and  on  that  day  she  was  taken  to  a 
place  near  the  teocalli  8 where  she  was  to  be  sacrificed.  As 
it  was  of  importance  that  she  should  not  mourn,  she  was 
informed  that  she  was  to  become  the  bride  of  the  king, 
and  for  this  imaginary  honour  she  was  adorned  with  the 
full  insignia  of  the  goddess  Tlazolteotl. 

1 Bk.  ii,  c.  xxx  ; see  also  Torquemada,  bk.  x,  c.  xxxv.  2 Pyramid  temple. 

11 


162  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


When  midnight  had  arrived,  in  a dead  and  unbroken  silence, 
she  was  led  to  the  summit  of  the  lofty  teocalli,  where  she  was 
placed  on  the  shoulders  of  a man,  as  was  the  custom  with 
brides  about  to  be  borne  to  the  houses  of  their  lords,  and 
ere  she  could  be  well  aware  what  was  about  to  happen,  she 
was  decapitated  and  immediately  flayed.  First  of  all  pieces 
of  skin  were  removed  from  the  broad  portion  of  the  thigh 
and  carried  to  the  temple  of  Cinteotl,  the  son  of  Tlazolteotl. 
The  skin  of  the  upper  part  of  the  body  formed  a jacket, 
which  a priest  of  Tlazolteotl,  chosen  for  his  strength  and 
vigour,  drew  over  his  own  body.  Accompanied  by  two 
men  vowed  to  his  assistance,  as  well  as  by  other  priests, 
dressed  to  represent  the  goddess’s  Huaxtec  servants,  all 
of  whom  carried  blood-sprinkled  brooms  which  they  bran- 
dished in  a combative  manner,  he  pursued  a number  of 
nobles  and  warriors,  who  struck  their  shields  and  made  a 
threatening  display.  The  priest  who  personified  the  goddess 
rushed  upon  these  with  simulated  fury,  but  they  fled  before 
him,  refusing  him  battle.  This  part  of  the  proceedings 
symbolized  the  warlike  nature  of  the  goddess,  and  the  mili- 
tary significance  of  her  cult.  As  has  been  explained,  the 
people  of  Mexico  believed  that  only  by  the  continued  offering 
up  of  human  sacrilice  and  blood  could  an  adequate  rainfall, 
and  therefore  abundant  harvests,  be  procured,  and  this 
naturally  presumed  the  upkeep  of  a considerable  standing 
army  and  many  military  guilds  or  brotherhoods  dedicated 
to  the  task  of  securing  a large  supply  of  sacrificial  victims. 
The  warlike  character  of  the  Earth-goddess  was  assumed 
as  a matter  of  course. 

This  chase  continued  until  the  priest  who  personated 
Tlazolteotl  came  to  the  teocalli  of  Uitzilopochtli,  the  War- 
god.  Here  he  lay  down  and  stretched  himself  out  in  the 
female  posture  for  sexual  intercourse.  Says  the  Axtec  text 
of  Sahagun  : “ Then  she  broadens  herself  [that  is  the  priest 
personating  the  goddess],  expands,  stretches  arms  and  legs 
out  at  the  feet  of  Uitzilopochtli,  her  face  turned  towards  him.” 
This  ceremony  undoubtedly  had  reference  to  a supposed 
impregnation  of  the  goddess  by  the  god  Uitzilopochtli,  and 


PROCESSION  OF  TLAZOLTEOTL 


163 


that  the  myth  relating  to  it  was  enacted  is  shown  by  the 
symbolic  presence  of  her  son,  Cinteotl,  or  a priest  dressed 
to  represent  that  god,  who  had  placed  over  his  face  a mask 
made  from  the  skin  of  the  thighs  of  the  Hayed  woman  which 
had  been  sent  to  his  temple,  and  who  was  now  regarded  as 
the  son  conceived.1 

In  addition  to  the  skin-mask,  the  Cinteotl  priest  wore  a 
hat  or  cap,  also  made  of  the  skin  of  the  sacriliced  victim, 
which  had  a vandyked  edging  of  the  crown,  or  a crest  like 
the  comb  of  a cock,  symbolic  of  the  stone  knife  of  sacrifice. 

Together,  the  priests  of  Tlazolteotl  and  Cinteotl  now  pro- 
ceeded to  the  temple  of  the  former,  where  they  awaited  the 
morning.  At  dawn  the  chief  men  of  the  community,  who 
had  been  waiting  near  the  teocalli,  ran  up  the  steps  of  the 
temple  bearing  offerings.  The  priest  of  the  goddess  was 
then  decorated  with  her  insignia  in  addition  to  the  dreadful 
trophy  he  wore.  His  head  and  feet  were  covered  with  the 
white  down  from  the  eagle’s  breast,  the  particular  ornament 
of  the  warrior  who  had  captured  a victim  in  battle,  llis 
face  was  painted  red,  the  colour  of  the  ripe  maize,  he  was 
clothed  in  a short  tunic  which  had  woven  upon  it  the  semblance 
of  an  eagle,  and  he  was  equipped  with  other  garments  for 
the  lower  part  of  the  body.  Still  richer  and  more  elaborate 
vestments  were  then  placed  on  him  by  the  priests,  after 
which  he  went  to  select  the  captives  who  must  die.  He 
chose  four  of  these,  and  placing  them  upon  the  stone  of  sacri- 
fice, dispatched  them  by  taking  out  their  hearts,  handing 
over  the  others  to  the  priests  to  deal  with  similarly.  This 
done,  he  accompanied  the  Cinteotl  priest  to  his  temple,  the 
liuaxtec  servants  marching  before  them,  wearing  what 
would  seem  to  be  huge  artificial  phalluses  and  tassels  of 
untwisted  cotton,  to  symbolize  the  virile  strength  and 
richness  of  the  earth.2  They  were  also  accompanied  by  the 
medical  women. 

1 Seler,  Commentary  on  Vaticanru  B,  p.  262,  believes  the  ceremony  to 
refer  to  the  parturition  of  the  goddess,  who  gives  birth  to  Cinteotl,  although 
ho  at  first  elucidated  the  ceremony  as  here  indicated.  Seler  confounds  the 
postures  of  sexual  intercourse  and  parturition. 

2 See  picture  in  Codex  Borbonicua. 


164  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


Coming  to  the  temple  of  Cinteotl,  the  priest  of  Tlazolteotl 
placed  one  foot  upon  the  drum  there,  and  awaited  the  priest 
of  Cinteotl,  who  later  set  out  alone  in  a hasty  manner,  and 
accompanied  by  a large  body  of  warriors,  to  a point  on  the 
frontiers  of  Mexico  where  a small  hut  stood,  and  at  this 
place  he  left  the  mask  and  cap  which  he  had  worn,  made 
from  the  thighs  of  the  sacrificed  woman.  Not  infrequently 
the  party  were  attacked  or  ambushed  and  fighting  ensued. 
I can  form  no  opinion  regarding  the  significance  of  this 
procedure.  Was  the  skin  left  on  the  frontier  as  a gage  of 
war,  as  would  appear  to  be  its  most  obvious  interpretation, 
or  did  it  possess  a deeper  and  more  symbolical  meaning  ? 
If  it  did,  I am  at  a loss  to  supply  the  elucidation.  I feel 
that  this  is  one  of  those  acts  so  often  encountered  in  primitive 
religion,  when  the  temptation  is  to  look  for  a profound 
meaning  where,  perhaps,  none  exists. 

The  priest  of  Tlazolteotl,  on  the  departure  of  his  colleague, 
proceeded  to  the  temple  called  Atempan,  or  “ Place  of 
Death,”  a favourite  muster-place  for  children  and  leprous 
persons  about  to  be  sacrificed,  which  was  situated  in  the 
precincts  of  the  great  temple  of  Mexico.  Here  the  king 
took  his  seat  on  a throne,  his  footstool  being  a nest  made  of 
eagles’  skin  and  feathers,  whilst  an  ocelot- skin  was  cast  over 
the  back  of  the  seat,  these  articles  symbolizing  the  “ knight- 
hoods ” of  the  eagle  and  ocelot  respectively.  A military 
review  followed,  and  the  monarch  distributed  raiment,  arms, 
and  insignia  to  the  deserving,  who,  thus  distinguished,  were 
expected  to  so  comport  themselves  in  war  that  they  might 
eventually  die  the  warrior’s  death,  the  only  fitting  end  for 
a Mexican  brave.  The  recipients  then  repaired  to  the 
temple  of  Tlazolteotl,  where  dancing  was  engaged  in.  The 
scene  was  picturesque  and  even  magnificent,  for  all  the 
dancers  held  llowers  in  each  hand  and  wore  the  dazzling 
insignia  of  their  various  ranks  and  orders. 

This  spectacle  continued  for  two  days,  and  on  the  evening 
of  the  second  day  the  priests  of  the  goddess  Chicomecoatl 
(q.v.),  clothed  in  the  skins  of  captives  slain  at  the  festival  of 
that  goddess,  ascended  a little  teocalli  known  as  the  “ Table 


TLAZOLTEOTL  AS  CONFESSOR 


165 


of  Uitzilopochtli,”  and  threw  broadcast  maize  and  calabash 
seeds  upon  the  heads  of  the  multitude  below,  who  scrambled 
for  the  grain.  The  young  women  in  the  service  of  Chicome- 
coatl  now  advanced,  each  bearing  upon  her  shoulder  seven 
ears  of  maize,  rolled  in  a rich  mantle,  and  wrapped  in  white 
paper,  after  being  sprinkled  with  ulli  gum.  The  high-priest 
of  the  goddess  led  the  chant,  after  which  he  descended  from 
the  teocalli  and  placed  in  a little  cavity  between  the  temple 
stairs  and  the  temple  itself  a large  basket  fdled  with  powdered 
chalk  and  feather-down.  The  warriors  at  once  rushed  upon 
it  and  scrambled  for  the  contents,  which  were,  of  course, 
symbolical  of  the  goddess’s  “ make-up.”  They  were  chased 
by  the  priests,  whom  they  pelted  with  the  chalk  and  feathers, 
even  the  king  taking  part  in  the  sport.  The  priest  then 
betook  himself  to  the  temple  of  the  goddess,  called  Toctitlan 
(“  The  Place  of  our  Grandmother”),  where  he  saw  the  skin 
of  the  sacrificed  woman  properly  disposed. 

Thus  ended  the  ceremonies  of  the  ochpaniztli,  one  of  the 
most  picturesque  and  involved,  yet  gruesome,  of  the  festivals 
of  ancient  Mexico. 

RITUAL 

Tlazolteotl,  as  we  shall  find  when  we  attempt  our  elucida- 
tion of  her  characteristics,  was  regarded  as  the  goddess  of 
sexual  indulgence,  a not  inappropriate  role  for  the  wild, 
wanton,  and  riotous  goddess  of  earth,  so  prodigal  in  her 
bringing  forth  and  (naturally  in  the  eyes  of  a primitive  people) 
so  bountiful  in  her  favours,  for  to  the  barbarian  mind 
productiveness  is  the  outcome  of  lustfulness.  By  an  easy 
transition,  then,  she  became  the  goddess  of  sexual  immorality, 
the  patron  of  prostitutes,  and  the  archetype  of  female  wanton- 
ness. But,  rather  strangely,  although  she  presided  over 
salacious  vice,  she  alone  could  pardon  it,  and  once  in  a 
lifetime  the  Mexican  adulterer  or  libertine  might  approach 
her  to  obtain  by  a full  confession  remission  of  his  sins.  This 
he  generally  did  late  in  life,  for  absolution  could  not  be 
obtained  on  a subsequent  occasion.  The  ritual  associated 
with  his  cleansing  was  a prolonged  and  involved  one,  and  is 


166  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


described  by  Sahagun  in  the  twelfth  chapter  of  his  first 
book. 

There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  the  account  of  the 
ritual  as  furnished  by  Sahagun  is  otherwise  than  genuine, 
and  he  remarks  upon  the  facility  with  which  the  native 
Mexicans  embraced  the  Catholic  confession  as  a proof  that 
the  rite  was  not  unknown  to  them. 

TEMPLE 

We  know  from  the  descriptions  of  the  ochpaniztli  festivals 
in  the  Sahagun  Aztec  MS.,  and  the  illustrations  accompanying 
them,  that  the  temple  of  Tlazolteotl,  the  Toctitlan,  was  a 
scaffolding  of  poles  on  which  was  set  a representation  of  the 
goddess. 

PRIESTHOOD 

That  Tlazolteotl  possessed  a priesthood  of  her  own  is 
obvious  from  the  repeated  mention  of  the  adolescent  youths 
known  as  Cuecuesteca  (“  Her  Huaxtecs  ”),  who  figured  in  the 
festival  of  ochpaniztli.  But  that  these  were  only  priests 
ad  hoc,  or  employed  temporarily  for  that  celebration,  is 
likely,  as  Sahagun  states  (Appendix  to  bk.  ii)  that  the 
Atempan  teohnatzin,  or  the  Chief  of  Rites  connected  with  the 
Atempan,  had  the  task  of  assembling  them,  as  well  as  charge 
of  the  insignia  used  at  the  festival.  Tlazolteotl’ s priests, 
according  to  Sahagun  (bk.  i,  c.  xii),  were  “ the  augurs  who 
possessed  the  books  with  the  prognostications  and  the 
destinies  of  the  new-born  and  the  spells  and  the  omens  and 
the  traditions  of  the  ancients,  as  they  were  handed  down  and 
came  unto  them.” 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Tlazolteotl  has  been  completely  identified  with  the  Teteo 
innan  or  Toci  of  Sahagun  and  other  writers,  but  though  she 
ranked  as  the  Earth-mother  of  Mexico  par  excellence,  there 
is  no  room  for  doubt  that  her  worship  was  originally  alien, 
and  assuredly  of  Huaxtec  origin.  The  Huaxtecs  were  a 
people  of  Maya  origin  or  affinities,  isolated  from  the  main 


NATURE  OF  TLAZOLTEOTL 


167 


body  of  that  race,  dwelling  on  the  east  coast  of  Mexico,  and 
retaining  many  of  their  peculiar  customs;  and  it  is  note- 
worthy that  a Huaxtecan  goddess  should  be  alluded  to  in 
Mexican  tradition  as  coming  to  Tollan,  the  city  of  the  Toltecs, 
the  people  whom  so  many  writers  have  tried  to  identify  with 
the  Maya.  As  has  been  observed,  she  was  accompanied  at 
the  ochpaniztli  festival  by  a band  of  youths  dressed  to 
represent  Iluaxtecs,  who  in  the  Codex  Borbonicus  picture 
of  the  festival  arc  shown  as  wearing  the  cone-shaped  Huaxtec 
cap.  She  herself  wears  the  Huaxtec  nose-ornament  in 
common  with  the  octli-gods.  She  is  repeatedly  stated  to 
have  had  her  “ home  ” in  Cuextlan,  the  Huaxtec  country, 
and  there  are  good  grounds  for  supposing  that  its  inhabitants, 
of  whose  religion  we  know  little,  had  brought  the  cult  of  the 
Earth-mother  to  such  a pitch  of  complex  perfection  as 
rendered  its  absorption  of  the  allied  Mexican  cults  merely  a 
matter  of  time  and  occasion. 

That  she  was  originally  a personification  of  the  maize  is 
also  clear.  In  her  songs  she  is  alluded  to  as  “ the  yellow 
bloom  ” and  “ the  white  bloom,”  and  the  references  to  her 
dwelling  in  Tamoanchan,  the  western  paradise  where  the 
maize  was  supposed  to  have  had  its  mythical  origin,  and 
where  she  gave  birth  to  Cinteotl,  the  young  maize-god, 
proves  her  association  with  this  food-plant.  But  she  was 
also  the  Earth,  the  insatiable,  lustful  mother,  who  gives 
birth  to  Cinteotl  the  young  maize-god,  who  is  also  the 
obsidian  knife  of  sacrifice,  for  the  Earth  is  the  mother  of 
stone.  As  Sin,  she  was  also  the  mother  of  death,  for  Cinteotl 
in  this  guise  was  undoubtedly  a god  of  fatality  or  doom. 

Like  many  other  deities  of  the  earth  she  may  have  had 
an  almost  plutonic  significance,  for  she  is  called  Tlalli  Iyallo, 
“ Heart  of  the  Earth.”  But  I think  that  Seler  ( Fejervary - 
Mayer,  p.  145)  has  mistaken  the  true  significance  of  this 
expression  in  applying  to  it  the  meaning  “ interior  of  the 
earth.”  The  word  “ heart”  in  the  Nahua  tongue  does  not 
necessarily  mean  “ interior.”  True,  Tepeyollotl,  the  Earth- 
quake-god, possessed  a similar  designation,  but  on  the  other 
hand  the  Quiche  Poyol  Vuh  alludes  to  the  god  Hurakan  as 


168  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


“ The  Heart  of  Heaven,”  and  I take  the  expression  to  mean 
in  general  “ soul,  spirit,”  rather  than  “ interior.”  But, 
again,  deities  of  grain  have  very  frequently  a subterranean 
association,  and,  according  to  Duran’s  description  of  the 
feast  of  the  goddess,  we  find  that  she  was  supposed  to  make 
her  coming  known  by  an  earthquake  shock,  and  she  is  ruler 
of  the  thirteenth  week,  ce  olin,  which  some  authorities 
translate  as  “ earthquake  ” or  “ earth-motion.” 

All  this  notwithstanding,  in  later  times  it  was  as  the 
goddess  of  sensuality  and  lustfulness  that  Tlazolteotl  made 
her  strongest  appeal  to  the  Mexican  imagination.  We  have 
already  seen  how  this  transition  took  place  and  how  this 
attribute  had  its  inception.  In  many  climes  the  figure  of  the 
fruitful  and  abundant  Earth-goddess  has  its  bestial,  revolting, 
and  highly  salacious  side,  and  the  Mexican  earth-deity  was 
no  exception  to  the  almost  general  rule.  In  several  pictures 
her  symbol  is  shown  as  a man  devouring  excrement  (sin). 
She  was  the  patroness  of  prostitutes,  and  by  a transition,  the 
ethical  character  of  which  seems  to  me  obscure,  she  finally 
became  the  great  pardoner  of  sexual  misdeeds. 

Probably  because  they  forfeited  their  lives  in  the  act  of 
bringing  forth,  she  came  to  be  regarded  as  the  cliieftainess 
of  those  women  who,  dying  in  childbed,  went  to  inhabit  the 
Ciutlampa,  the  house  of  the  women  in  the  west.  These 
female  spirits  were  regarded  by  the  Mexicans  as  the  equal 
of  warriors  who  had  died  heroically  in  battle,  and  issued 
daily  from  their  paradise  to  accompany  the  sun  in  his  after- 
noon course.  It  is  typical  of  these  Ciuateteo,  or  deified 
women,  that  in  their  jealousy  of  living  people  and  their 
offspring,  they  exerted  a noxious  influence  upon  mortals, 
especially  upon  children,  at  certain  seasons,  and  as  the  inter- 
preter of  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  states,  they  are  identified 
with  European  witches,  flying  through  the  air  and  meeting 
at  cross-roads.  Now  the  broom  is  the  symbol  of  the 
European  witch,  as  it  is  of  Tlazolteotl,  and  in  Codex  Fejervary- 
Mayer  (sheet  17)  we  have  a picture  of  Tlazolteotl  as  represen- 
tative of  the  Ciuateteo,  naked  and  riding  upon  a broomstick. 
In  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  12)  and  Codex  Vaiicanus  B (sheet  30) 


TLAZOLTEOTL  AS  MOON-GODDESS 


169 


beside  her  is  figured  a house  with  an  owl  standing  at  the  door, 
while  in  front  hangs  a string  of  dried  medicinal  herbs,  the 
whole  representing  the  dwelling  of  a sorceress  or  medicine- 
witch,  for  Tlazolteotl  was  also  patroness  of  the  medical 
women,  who  danced  at  her  festival,  and  Sahagun  (bk.  i,  c.  viii) 
expressly  states  that  she  was  venerated  by  the  “ physicians,” 
that  is,  the  medicine-men  and  wizards. 

Probably  by  reason  of  her  fecundity  Tlazolteotl  was  also 
regarded  as  a divinity  who  presided  over  human  birth.  She 
is  frequently  portrayed  as  the  great  parturient  and  represents 
the  womb  1 (Vaticanus  B , sheet  51).  But  she  does  not  breathe 
the  spirit  into  the  newly-born  child  or  transport  it  from  the 
upper  regions  as  does  Quetzalcoatl,  her  office  being  the 
lower  one  of  presiding  over  the  child-bed,  a task  which  she 
shares  with  other  Mexican  deities  of  vegetation  and  produc- 
tion. 

Like  other  goddesses  who  preside  over  birth  she  may  also 
have  a lunar  connexion.  It  is  probable  that  the  Huaxtec 
nose-ornament  which  she  wears  in  common  with  the  octli- 
gods  is  a lunar  symbol.2  In  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  55)  she  is 
represented  as  standing  opposite  the  moon,  but  this  may 
only  indicate  her  connexion  with  night  and  witchcraft. 
I am  of  opinion,  however,  that  Seler’s  assumption  that  she 
is  a moon-goddess  is  not  altogether  capable  of  proof.  On 
the  other  hand,  goddesses  of  vegetation  and  childbirth  are 
frequently  associated  with  the  moon,  and  his  theory  may  be 
perfectly  sound.  We  must  remember,  however,  that  in  his 
more  recent  works,  just  as  the  solar  school  of  mytholo- 
gists  was  accused  of  “ seeing  sun-gods  everywhere,”  Seler 
has  undoubtedly  applied  a lunar  significance  to  several 
deities  whose  characteristics  he  formerly  elucidated  in  totally 
different  fashion. 

The  warlike  nature  of  Tlazolteotl  has  already  been  dwelt 
upon  and  its  reason  demonstrated  in  the  section  dealing  with 
the  ochpaniztli  festival. 

1 As  do  Aphrodite,  and  other  goddesses  of  love. 

2 It  is  equally  the  symbol  of  the  fertility-pot. 


170  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


CHICOMECOATL  = “ SEVEN  SNAKE” 

Area  of  WoRsmp  : Mexico. 

Minor  Name  : Chicomolotl  = “ Seven  Maize-ears.” 

Relationship  : Sister  of  Tlaloc. 

Symbol  : The  double  maize-ear  ( commaitl ). 

Festivals  : Uei  tozoztli,  the  fourth  month  ; ochpaniztli,  the  eleventh 
month. 

Calendar  Place  : Seventh  day  of  the  seventh  week ; the  day 
chicomecoatl.  (Sahagun  states  that  all  days  containing  a seven 
in  their  name  were  regarded  as  auspicious  on  her  account.) 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Aubin-Goupil  Tonalamatl. — Sheet  7 : The  goddess  is 

depicted  as  having  a red  body  and  facial  painting,  and  wears 
variegated  raiment  in  which  red  is  the  preponderating  colour. 
On  her  head  is  a large  square  headdress,  also  red  in  colour 
and  decorated  with  rosettes  at  the  four  corners — such  a head- 
dress, indeed,  as  Tlazolteotl  wears  at  the  ochpaniztli  festival. 
She  holds  in  her  hand  the  double  maize-ear,  which  may  be 
regarded  as  her  peculiar  and  distinctive  emblem. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — In  this  codex  she  is  seen  wearing  red 
paint  and  the  red  garment,  holding  the  double  maize-ear,  and 
carrying  other  maize-ears  in  a receptacle  on  her  back.  Seler 
thinks  that  her  red  colour  is  that  of  the  granular  bunch  of 
the  young  maize-ear  which  she  represents,  and  that  Tlazol- 
teotl or  Teteoinnan,  who  is  painted  yellow  and  white,  repre- 
sents the  ripe  maize-ear. 

Sahagun  MS. — The  Sahagun  MS.  states  that  Chicome- 
coatl’s  face  is  coloured  red  and  that  she  wears  a paper  crown 
on  her  head  and  a collar  of  green  precious  stones  round  her 
neck.  She  has  an  overdress  and  skirt  of  spring  flowers  and 
wears  bells  and  shells  on  her  feet.  Her  shield  has  the  emblem 
of  the  summer  flower  painted  upon  its  surface,  and  she  carries 
the  double  maize-ear  in  her  hand. 

MYTIIS 

The  hymn  to  Chicomecoatl  as  given  in  the  Sahagun  MS. 
is  as  follows  : 


Chicomecoatl.  (From  the 
Sahagun  MS.) 


Figure  of  Chicomecoatl.  (Chile  Collcc 
tion,  Berlin.) 


Chicomecoatl.  (From  the  Sahagun  .MS.,  Laurenziana). 


1701 


FORMS  OF  CHICOMECOATL. 


(Codex  Bologna,  sheet  13.) 


FESTIVAL  OF  UEI  TOZOZTLI 


171 


Goddess  of  the  seven  ears,  arise,  awake  ! 

For,  our  mother,  thou  leavest  us. 

Thou  returnest  to  Tlalocan. 

Arise,  awake  ! 

Mother,  thou  leavest  us  now. 

Thou  goest  to  thy  homo  in  Tlalocan. 

Which  may,  perhaps,  be  interpreted  thus  : The  expression 
“seven  ears”  is  an  allusion  to  the  seven  ears  of  maize, 
sprinkled  with  rubber  oil  and  wrapped  in  paper  and  cloth, 
which  each  maiden  in  a procession  of  virgins  carried  to  the 
temple  of  the  goddess,  the  cinteopan , at  the  festival  of  uei 
tozoztli  (April  27th).  The  maize  is  now  full  grown  and  the 
goddess’s  labours  are  over  for  the  time  being,  so  that  she  is 
enabled  to  return  to  Tlalocan,  the  paradise  of  her  brother 
Tlaloc. 

FESTIVALS 

The  Uei  Tozoztli. — The  first  festival  attributed  to  Chicome- 
coatl  in  the  calendar  was  the  uei  tozoztli,  or  the  “ great 
watch,”  so  called  because  of  the  watch  or  wake  kept  in  the 
houses  of  the  people,  accompanied  by  a general  fast.  The 
best  accounts  of  it  are  those  of  Sahagun  1 and  Torquemada.* 
In  this  rite  the  goddess  was  associated  with  Cinteotl.  After 
a four  days’  fast,  certain  rushes  were  stained  with  sacrificial 
blood  and  placed  upon  the  images  of  the  gods  in  both  house 
and  temple.  Branches  of  laurel  and  beds  or  mattresses  of 
hay  were  placed  before  the  altars,  and  maize  porridge  was 
distributed  to  the  young  men.  The  people  walked  in  the 
fields  cutting  stalks  of  the  young  maize,  which  they  bedecked 
with  flowers,  placing  them  before  the  altars  of  the  gods  in 
the  calpulli,  or  common  house  of  the  village,  along  with  food- 
offerings  of  every  kind,  baskets  of  tortillas,  or  pancakes  of 
chian  flour  and  toasted  maize  mixed  with  beans,  each  sur- 
mounted by  a cooked  frog.  On  the  back  of  the  frog  offered 
up  with  the  tortillas  they  placed  a joint  cut  from  a maize-stalk 
filled  with  small  pieces  of  every  kind  of  the  food  offered  up. 
Thus  laden,  the  frog  symbolized  the  earth,  bearing  her 
fruits  on  her  back.  All  this  victual  was  carried  in  the  after- 


1 Bk.  ii,  c.  xxiii. 


2 Lib.  x,  c.  xiii. 


172  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


noon  to  the  temple  of  Chicomecoatl,  and  eaten  in  a general 
scramble.  The  ears  of  maize  preserved  for  seed  were  carried 
in  procession  by  virgins  to  the  temple  of  the  goddess,  each 
maiden  bearing  seven  ears  of  maize,  sprinkled  with  ulli  gum 
and  wrapped  in  paper  and  cloth.  The  legs  and  arms  of  these 
girls  were  ornamented  with  red  feathers  and  their  faces  were 
smeared  with  pitch  and  sprinkled  with  marcassite.  To  these 
the  crowd  were  forbidden  to  speak,  but  much  persiflage  was, 
nevertheless,  engaged  in.  The  people  then  returned  to  their 
houses,  and  the  sanctified  maize  was  placed  in  every  granary 
and  corn-crib,  was  known  as  the  “ heart”  thereof,  and  re- 
mained there  until  taken  out  to  be  used  as  seed.  It  does  not 
appear  that  human  sacrifice  accompanied  this  festival,  which 
seems  to  have  represented  ancient  rustic  rites,  the  ritual  of  the 
family  and  the  village,  handed  down  from  very  early  times. 

Ochpaniztli  (“Sweeping  of  Temples”). — In  this  festival, 
held  about  the  beginning  of  September,  the  goddess  played 
an  important  although  by  no  means  the  principal  part,  and 
as  it  is  fully  described  in  the  pages  dealing  with  Tlazolteotl, 
it  will  suffice  here  to  mention  that  the  rites  accorded  to  Chi- 
comecoatl on  this  occasion  appear  to  have  been  almost 
the  same  as  those  rendered  at  her  first  festival.  The  nature 
of  her  connexion  with  the  other  deities  of  maize  is  indicated 
in  the  introduction  to  the  section  dealing  with  the  earth  and 
grain  gods,  and  her  participation  in  the  rites  of  the  och- 
paniztli perhaps  exhibits  the  zealous  activity  of  an  ancient 
cult  in  rivalry  with  a later  and  more  popular  one.  It  would 
certainly  seem  as  if  Chicomecoatl  had  been  recognized  in  the 
ochpaniztli  rites  as  an  afterthought  and  for  the  purpose  of 
placating  her  priesthood,  as  much  as  for  the  honour  of  the 
goddess  herself,  or  that  it  was  a protest  on  the  part  of  the 
ministers  of  her  cult,  who  did  not  desire  to  see  their  divinity 
ignored  at  a season  at  which  she  had  probably  been  wor- 
shipped from  time  immemorial. 

PRIESTHOOD 

That  Chicomecoatl  had  a priesthood  specially  consecrated 
to  her  is  manifest  from  the  accounts  of  her  festivals,  and  this 


NATURE  OF  CIIICOMECOATL 


173 


must  have  been  in  most  respects  similar  in  organization  and 
character  to  those  of  Cinteotl  (the  Cinteotzin),  Tlazolteotl, 
and  Xipe.  That  she  had  also  a corps  of  priestesses  or  holy 
women  attached  to  her  worship  is  equally  clear  from  the  same 
source.  But  we  learn  nothing  of  their  precise  status  or 
polity  from  any  of  the  old  authorities. 

TEMPLES 

Chicomecoatl  appears  to  have  had  two  temples,  both 
situated  within  the  precincts  of  the  great  temple  at  Mexico. 
The  first  was  the  Chicomecoatl  iteopan  (“  Temple  of  Chicome- 
coatl ”)  and  the  other  the  Cinteopan  (“  Maize  Temple  ”), 
which,  however,  must  not  be  confounded  with  that  sacred  to 
Cinteotl. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Chicomecoatl  is  obviously  the  ancient  and  indigenous 
maize-goddess  of  the  Mexican  Valley,  whose  worship  had 
existed  from  early  times.  The  statement  by  the  interpreter 
in  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  that  she  caused  famines  is  most 
certainly  an  error  and  much  more  applicable  to  Ciuacoatl. 
The  identification  of  her  in  the  same  place  with  Tonacaciuatl, 
the  female  companion  of  the  creative  deity, is  probably  correct, 
as  she  seems  to  have  been  an  agricultural  variant  of  the  old 
earth-mother.  Chicomecoatl  was  the  patroness  of  the  food 
supply,  who,  says  Sahagun,  “ was  the  goddess  of  subsist- 
ence,” and  “ the  original  maker  of  bread  and  victuals  and 
cookery  in  general,”  and  whose  sign  radiated  good  fortune 
and  happy  influences.  In  this  goddess,  as  viewed  through 
the  medium  of  the  observances  practised  at  her  festival,  we 
see,  perhaps,  the  old  and  indigenous  earth-goddess  as  the 
helper  and  foster-parent  of  the  younger  earth-mother, 
Tlazolteotl,  for  the  grain  of  the  year  before  was  hers  and  was 
placed  in  the  granaries  to  “ help  ” or  form  a nucleus  to  the 
new  grain.  Again,  it  was  perhaps  natural  that  the  elder 
earth-goddess  should  preside  over  the  old  grain  used  for 
seed,  and  the  younger  goddess  over  the  grain  which  had  not 
yet  come  to  fruition.  In  many  countries  two  grain-spirits, 


174  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


mother  and  daughter,  appear  in  the  agricultural  pantheon. 
In  Breton  custom  the  mother-sheaf — a figure  made  out  of 
the  last  sheaf — bears  within  it  a lesser  bundle,  which  is  re- 
garded as  the  unborn  daughter  ; and  in  Prussia,  Malaysia, 
Scotland,  and  Greece,  this  double  personification  of  the  corn 
was  or  is  in  vogue. 

CINTEOTL  = “ MAIZE-GOD  ” 

Territory  : Totonac  ; Aztec  ; Xochimilco. 

Minor  Names  : 

Ce  Xochitl  = “ One  Flower  ” (date). 

Chicomoltotzin  = “ Seven  Ears.” 

Relationship  : Son  of  Tlazolteotl  ; husband  of  Xochiquetzal. 

Symbol  : The  god’s  head  with  maize  headdress  (as  in  Bologna  tona- 
lamall). 

Festivals  : Uei  tozoztli  ; ochpaniztli. 

Compass  Directions  : North  ; West. 

Calendar  Place  : 

Fourth  of  the  Nine  Lords  of  the  Night. 

Seventh  of  the  Thirteen  Lords  of  the  Day. 

( Codex  Borbonicus,  sheet  20.) 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  52  : In  this  place  Cinteotl  is  figured 
as  a male  deity  of  yellow  colour  and  with  a peculiar  black, 
angular,  longitudinal  band  on  the  face  and  bearing  a load  of 
maize-ears  on  his  back.  In  one  hand  he  carries  the  rain- 
staff  and  in  the  other  the  throwing-stick.  Sheet  14  : In  this 
illustration  he  is  clearly  recognized  as  the  Maize-god  by  the 
maize-ears  and  the  maize-blooms  which  he  wears  in  his 
fillet  or  on  his  head.  In  other  respects  his  insignia  resembles 
that  of  the  Sun-god  in  its  flame-coloured  hair,  the  jewelled 
head-strap  with  the  conventional  bird’s  head  on  the  frontal 
side,  the  large  gold  disk  on  his  breast,  and  on  the  nape  of  the 
neck  the  rosette  painted  in  the  colours  of  the  green  jewel 
chalchihuitl. 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  20  : He  wears  on  his  head  a 
notched  crown  like  that  of  the  earth,  mountain,  and  rain  gods, 
except  that  it  is  painted  green  and  yellow,  the  colours  of  the 


SONGS  OF  THE  MAIZE-GOD 


175 


maize.  It  is  fastened  with  a tie  at  the  occiput,  which  adorn- 
ment is  painted  in  like  colours  and  resembles  the  knot  worn 
by  these  deities.  As  with  the  llain-god,  it  shows  the  long, 
dark  hair  hanging  down  below  it.  On  his  breast  he  wears, 
attached  to  a chain  of  jewelled  beads,  an  ornament  which 
is  painted  in  the  colours  of  the  chalchihuitl  and  from  which 
hang  jewelled  thongs.  The  loin-cloth  is  in  the  colours  of  the 
maize,  showing  alternate  yellow  and  green  cross-bands. 

Aubin  Tonalamatl. — Sheet  8 : Here  he  is  represented 

opposite  Mayauel.  On  his  back  he  wears  a plumed  staff 
with  a heart.  In  his  hand  he  holds  the  quetzal  feather-flag. 

MYTHS 

Cinteotl  was  regarded  by  the  Mexicans  as  having  been 
born  of  the  goddess  Tlazolteotl  in  the  sacred  western  region 
of  Tamoanchan  (the  House  of  Birth),  which  they  looked  upon 
as  the  original  home  of  the  maize-plant.  A song  sung  at  the 
atamalqualiztli  festival  is  as  follows  : 

Born  is  the  Maize-god 
In  the  House  of  Descent, 

In  the  place  where  the  flowers  are. 

The  god  One-flower. 

The  Maize-god  is  born 

In  the  place  of  water  and  of  mist. 

Where  the  children  of  men  are  made. 

In  the  jewel  Michoacan. 

He  is  also  associated  with  the  flower-gods  in  certain 
strophes  of  the  song  to  these  divinities  : 


On  the  ball-ground  the  quetzalcoxcoxtli  sings  ; 

The  Maize-god  answers  him. 

Beautifully  sings  our-  friend  the  quetzal. 

In  the  twilight  of  the  red  maize  god. 

My  song  shall  be  heard  by  the  lord  of  the  twilight, 
The  god  with  the  thigh-skin  face-painting. 

I came  to  the  place  where  the  roads  meet, 

I,  the  Maize-god. 

Where  shall  1 now  go  ? 

Which  way  shall  I take  ? 


176  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


This  song  I would  interpret  as  follows  : The  game  of 
tlachtli,  a description  of  hockey,  is  in  some  measure  associated 
with  the  maize-gods.  The  quetzalcoxcoxtli  bird  is  Xochipilli, 
the  Flower-god,  with  whom  Cinteotl  is  closely  associated,  and 
who  is  connected  with  games  of  all  kinds,  stone  effigies 
of  him  being  set  up  in  the  tlachtli  courts.  Cinteotl  is  a 
god  who  emanates  from  the  west,  and  is  associated  with  the 
twilight.  At  his  festival  a piece  of  skin  was  stripped  from 
the  thigh  of  the  female  victim  and  made  into  a mask  for 
his  priest.  The  place  where  the  roads  meet  is  evidently 
the  haunting-place  of  the  Ciuapipiltin  or  Ciuateteo,  women 
who  died  in  childbed,  of  whom  Tlazolteotl,  Cinteotl’s  mother, 
was  the  patroness.  The  god  complains  that  he  has  a difficulty 
in  finding  his  way  at  the  cross-roads.  This  was  the  precise 
reason  for  which  they  were  made,  that  the  Ciupipiltin  or 
haunting  mothers  should  be  puzzled  by  them,  or  “ wandered,” 
as  the  Scottish  expression  is.  Witches  all  the  world  over 
are  baffled  by  cross-roads,  and  formerly  the  bodies  of  suicides 
were  buried  beneath  them,  so  that,  did  their  spirits  arise, 
they  would  be  puzzled  by  the  multiplicity  of  directions  and 
be  baffled  in  their  intent  to  haunt  the  living. 

FESTIVALS 

The  first  festival  with  which  Cinteotl  was  associated  was 
the  uei  tozoztli,  held  in  April.  After  a four  days’  fast,  the 
houses  were  decked  with  irises  and  sprinkled  with  blood  drawn 
from  the  ears  and  the  front  of  the  legs,  and  the  nobles  and 
wealthier  folk  decorated  their  houses  with  the  boughs  of  a 
plant  called  axcoyatl.1  Search  was  made  in  the  fields  for  the 
young  stalks  of  maize,  which  were  decked  with  flowers  and 
placed  before  the  gods,  along  with  food.  The  goddess 
Chicomecoatl  was  also  revered  at  this  festival.  At  the 
ochpaniztli  festival,  too,  in  honour  of  his  mother  Tlazolteotl, 
Cinteotl  was  peculiarly  venerated,  and  a full  account  of  the 
proceedings  will  be  found  in  the  pages  referring  to  Tlazolteotl. 
It  is  necessary,  however,  to  refer  in  passing  to  one  custom, 
that  in  connexion  with  which  the  thigh-skin  of  the  female 

1 A species  of  wild  laurel. 


CINTEOTL’S  HEADDRESS 


177 


victim  was  stripped  off  and  carried  to  the  temple  of  Cinteotl, 
where  it  was  made  into  a mask  which  the  priest  of  the  god 
placed  over  his  face.1  He  also  wore  a jacket  and  hood  of 
feathers,  resembling  the  naualli  or  bird-disguise  of  the  god — 
the  coxcoxtli,  which  seems  to  have  represented  both  Cinteotl 
and  Xochipilli,  and  to  have  formed  a kind  of  bond  between 
them.  The  crest  of  the  hood  resembled  the  comb  of  a cock, 
and  whilst  possibly  having  the  significance  of  a bird’s  comb, 
was  also  held  to  symbolize  the  sharp-cutting  flint  knife  of 
sacrifice  (see  Tlazolteotl).  Lastly,  the  horrible  relics  of  the 
festival  were  conveyed  by  the  Cinteotl  priest  and  a picked 
body-guard  to  a hut  on  the  frontier,  where  they  were  left, 
for  what  purpose  I am  able  to  form  no  definite  opinion.* 

TEMPLES 

Several  temples  appear  to  have  been  dedicated  to  the 
worship  of  Cinteotl  at  Mexico,  but  as  the  names  of  these 
sometimes  imply  a collective  dedication  to  the  maize-gods, 
it  is  somewhat  difficult  to  ascertain  precisely  which  of  the 
edifices  was  peculiar  to  Cinteotl.  However,  the  lztac  cinteotl 
iteopan,  or  temple  of  the  deity  of  white  maize,  at  Mexico, 
more  probably  refers  to  Cinteotl’s  place  of  worship,  as  Sahagun 
states,  than  to  that  of  any  other  deity.  Here,  says  the  friar, 
were  sacrificed  leprous  captives,  who  were  slain  during  the 
days  of  fasting  in  honour  of  the  sun,  when  that  luminary 
was  at  its  greatest  height.3  In  the  Cinteopan  was  to  be  seen 
a statue  of  Cinteotl,  before  which  captives  were  sacrificed 
on  the  occasion  of  his  festival. 

The  temple  of  Tlatauhqui  Cinteotl  (red  maize)  appears 
to  have  been  the  preserve  of  the  maize-gods  collectively. 

PRIESTHOOD 

That  Cinteotl  had  a separate  and  distinct  priesthood  is 
manifest  from  allusions  to  it  in  accounts  of  his  festivals. 

1 The  custom  of  wearing  a mask  of  the  deity  worshipped  (in  this  case  the 
slain  woman  represented  the  goddess)  is  widespread. 

2 Sahagun,  bk.  ii. 

s Appendix  to  bk.  ii. 

12 


178  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


Among  the  Totonacs  two  high-priests  were  especially  dedi- 
cated to  him.  These  were  widowers  over  sixty  years  of  age, 
who  wore  jackets  made  from  the  skins  of  jackals,  were  not 
permitted  to  eat  fish,  and  whose  duty  consisted  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  manuscripts  and  the  deliverance  of  oracular  messages. 
The  Totonacs  thought  human  sacrifices  unnecessary  to  him, 
and  offered  up  birds  and  small  animals  at  his  shrine,  regarding 
him  as  their  protector  from  the  more  sanguinary  deities, 
says  Clavigero.1 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

It  would  appear  from  the  data  at  our  disposal  that  Cinteotl 
was  originally  a maize-god  of  the  Totonacs,  a people  allied 
in  race  to  the  Maya-speaking  Huaxtecs  of  the  east  coast. 
It  will  be  recalled  that  his  mother,  Tlazolteotl,  was  of  Huaxtec 
origin.  Cinteotl  may  originally  have  been  regarded  by  the 
Maya-spcaking  coast  people  as  her  son,  or  again  the  relation- 
ship between  them  may  have  been  symbolic  and  relatively 
late  in  its  development.  But  the  myth  appears  as  ancient 
and  well  founded,  and  the  corn-mother  who  has  a son  or 
daughter  is  noticeable  in  many  mythologies. 

Although  Cinteotl  is  alluded  to  as  a goddess  by  Clavigero 
and  other  writers,  it  is  abundantly  clear  that  his  godhead 
is  of  the  male  order,  as  the  pictures  which  represent  him 
prove.  Seler  lays  stress  upon  his  absolute  identification  with 
Xochipilli  and  Macuilxochitl,  but  although  resemblances 
certainly  exist,  it  seems  to  me  that  there  are  as  many  points 
of  difference  between  these  gods  and  that  the  likeness  was 
the  outcome  of  later  development.  Thus  it  can  be  shown 
by  Seler’s  own  conclusions  that,  whereas  Xochipilli  was  the 
patron  of  gaming  and  sport  and  light-hearted  amusement, 
Cinteotl.  on  the  other  hand,  was  symbolic  of  that  death  which 
is  the  offspring  of  sin.2 

1 Who,  like  several  of  the  older  Spanish  authorities,  regarded  Cinteotl  as  a 
goddess,  a belief  now  exploded.  See  vol.  i,  bk.  vi  (English  translation). 

2 It  might  bo  quoted  against  this  view  that  the  lewd  life  of  pleasure  of  which 
Xochipilli  and  Macuilxochitl  are  the  representatives  results  in  that  death 
which  is  the  child  of  sin,  and  that  these  gods  are  therefore  “ brothers  ” to 
Cinteotl  in  this  especial  connexion.  Seler,  Comm.  Codex  Fej. -Mayer,  p.  66 ; 
Comm.  Codex  Vat.  B,  pp.  207-208. 


CIUACOATL 


179 


Cinteotl’s  mother,  Tlazolteotl,  the  goddess  of  lust,  un- 
doubtedly typifies  sin,  and  her  son  symbolizes  the  death 
which  follows  it  and  is  its  wages,  the  sharp  knife  of  sacrifice. 
The  indented  cap  he  wears  is  typical  of  this  implement,  and 
was  known  as  itzlacoliuhqui  (“  frost  ”),  an  expression  which 
is  also  translated  as  “ death  ” and  which  is  occasionally 
employed  of  Tezcatlipoca  in  his  phase  of  god  of  justice. 

But  Cinteotl  had  another  connexion  with  the  plutonic, 
such  as  is  possessed  by  many  grain-gods,  and  must,  like  Hades 
and  Ishtar,  be  regarded  as  a deity  of  the  Underworld,  the 
place  of  the  dead,  the  realm  in  which  the  seed  germinates 
ere  it  sprouts  above  ground.  He  was  the  tutelary  deity 
of  the  goldsmiths  of  Xochimilco,  oddly  enough,  it  seems  to 
us,  until  we  recall  the  resemblance  between  the  ripe  maize- 
cob  and  the  work  of  the  native  jewellers.1 

It  is,  however,  as  the  young  maize-god — the  maize  in  its 
tender  and  half-ripened  condition — that  he  must  be  chiefly 
regarded,  and  that  he  was  looked  upon  by  the  ancient 
Mexicans.  He  strongly  resembles  the  Maya  god  E. 

CIUACOATL  = “ SERPENT  WOMAN  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Colhuacan  and  Xochimilco. 

Minor  Names  : 

Quilaztli  = “ Obsidian  Plant  ” (?). 

Quauhciuatl  = “ Woman-eagle.” 

Yaociuatl  = “ Woman-warrior.” 

Tonantzin  = “ Our  Mother.” 

Relationship  : Mother  of  Mixcoatl  ; sister  of  the  Centzon  Mimixcoa. 
Symbol  : Obsidian  knife. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

General. — In  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  60)  she  appears  as  one 
of  the  two  heads,  or  faces,  of  Quaxolotl,  a female  face  framed 
by  long,  streaming  hair,  with  the  fleshless  under- jaw  and  the 
exposed  teeth  of  a dead  person’s  skull. 

The  Sahagun  MS.  describes  her  as  having  a face  painted 
half-red,  half-black,  with  a thick  smear  of  indiarubber 
round  the  lips.  She  wears  a crown  of  eagle-feathers  and  a 

1 Sahagun,  bk.  ix,  c.  xvii. 


180  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 

golden  ear-plug.  Her  overdress  is  “ the  colour  of  spring 
flowers  ” (red),  and  she  also  has  an  undergarment  with  a 
fringe,  and  a white  enagua,  or  skirt.  Her  costume  is  adorned 
with  shells  and  she  wears  sandals.  Her  shield  is  inset  with 
eagle’s  feathers. 

An  ancient  song  to  her  states  that  she  carries  a rattle- 
stick.  She  has  a shield-device  similar  to  that  of  Chantico, 
with  whom  she  seems  to  be  a parallel. 

MYTHS 

In  the  “ Song  of  the  Earth-goddesses,”  Ciuacoatl  is 
alluded  to  as  follows  : 

The  eagle  Quilaztli  is  painted  with  serpent’s  blood  ; 

Her  crown  is  made  of  eagle-feathers. 

The  high  cypresses  of  the  Chalmeca  land  shelter  her. 

The  maize  has  come  ; 

On  the  fields  of  the  gods 
She  loans  on  the  rattle-staff. 

In  my  hand  rests  the  agave  thorn  ; 

On  the  fields  of  the  gods 
She  leans  on  her  rattle-staff. 

The  broom  is  in  my  hand  ; 

On  the  fields  of  the  gods 
She  leans  on  the  rattle-staff. 

Thirteen  eagles  is  our  mother,  goddess  of  the  Chalmeca; 

The  spear  of  the  prickly  plant  lays  me  low  ; 

It  is  my  son  Mixcoatl. 

Our  mother  the  warrior. 

The  deer  from  Colhuacan, 

She  is  stuck  with  feathers. 

Morning  has  dawned 

The  order  to  the  warriors  has  gone  forth. 

Drag  the  captives  hence, 

The  whole  land  shall  be  destroyed. 

The  deer  from  Colhuacan, 

She  is  stuck  with  feathers. 

Those  who  fight  bravely  in  war 
Are  painted  with  eagle-feathers.1 

1 Sahagun  MS. 


180] 


(From  the  Sahagun  MS.) 


Pottery  figure.  (Uhde  Collection.) 
FORMS  OF  CIUACOATL. 


(181 


CIUACOATL’S  HYMN  INTERPRETED 


181 


This  wild  song  may  be  interpreted  as  follows  : 

The  aspect  of  the  goddess  is  described.  She  rests  (as  do 
Uitzilopochtli  and  other  gods)  under  the  shade  of  the  cypress 
trees.  The  maize  is  about  to  be  planted,  and  she  bears  in 
her  hand  the  rattle-staff  or  rain-rattle,  carried  by  all  the 
earth-  and  rain-gods  and  their  priests,  with  which  she  brings 
down  the  rain  by  dint  of  sympathetic  magic  and  which 
implement  was  also  symbolic  of  fruitfulness  or  sexual  union.1 
The  worshipper  takes  the  agave  thorn  in  his  hand  wherewith 
to  pierce  his  tongue  and  other  members,  so  that  the  blood 
thus  obtained  may  produce  rain  for  the  growth  of  the  maize. 
The  broom  alluded  to  is  a symbol  of  the  earth-goddesses, 
and  was  made  of  hard,  stiff,  pointed  grass,  cut  with  sickles 
in  the  mountainous  forests  of  Popocatepetl  and  Ajusco 
(see  Tlazolteotl).  “ Thirteen  eagles  ” is  a date  in  the  tona- 
lamatl,  the  last  day  of  the  division  ce  calli.  It  was  connected 
with  the  Ciaateted,  the  vengeful  women  who  died  in  child- 
bed, of  whom  Tlazolteotl  is  the  prototype.  The  “ spear 
of  the  prickly  plant  ” (cactus)  is  the  weapon  of  Mixcoatl, 
son  of  the  goddess,  and  is  here  probably  alluded  to  as  the  light- 
ning which  accompanies  the  rainfall  in  Mexico,  for  Mixcoatl 
is  the  “ Cloud-Serpent,”  “ the  lightning-god.”  Or  the  wor- 
shipper may  complain  of  weakness  from  loss  of  blood  shed 
as  an  offering  by  his  use  of  the  agave  thorn.  The  warlike 
nature  of  Ciuacoatl  is  next  alluded  to.  She  was  evidently 
identified  at  Cuitlauac,  and  Xochimilco,  with  the  two-headed 
deer,  an  animal  frequently  connected  with  the  worship  of  the 
nomadic  Chichimecs,  as  was  Mixcoatl,  her  son.  She  is  stuck 
with  eagle  feathers  or  down,  like  the  successful  warrior 
who  had  captured  an  enemy.  The  warriors  must  now  depart 
to  seek  for  further  victims.  The  whole  song  is  eloquent  of 
the  connexion  of  the  earth-cult  with  war  and  human  sacrifice. 

Ciuacoatl  is  spoken  of  by  Duran  and  Sahagun  as  a warrior 
goddess  who  gave  the  Mexicans  victory  over  their  enemies, 

1 At  the  festival  of  Demeter,  with  whose  worship  the  serpent  was  connected, 
the  earth  was  struck  with  rods  by  the  priest  who  called  upon  the  goddess. 
This  is  also  done  during  the  act  of  divination  among  the  Zulus,  when  they  call 
upon  spirits.  See  Callaway,  Izinyanga  Zokubula,  p.  362. 


182  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


and  by  Torquemada  1 as  the  elder  sister  of  the  Mimixcoa, 
the  stellar  gods  of  the  steppe.  She  it  was,  too,  who,  according 
to  another  myth,  pounded  the  human  bones  brought  by 
Quetzalcoatl  from  the  Underworld  into  a paste,  from  which 
men  were  formed — an  allusion  to  the  belief  current  in  Mexico 
that  man  was  made,  or  at  least  “ built  up,”  from  maize.* 
Sahagun  says  of  her  3 that  she  dispensed  adverse  fortune, 
poverty,  abjectness,  and  misery.  She  was  wont  to  appear 
to  men  in  the  guise  of  a richly  dressed  lady,  such  as  fre- 
quented the  court.  Through  the  night  she  wandered,  howling 
and  bellowing.  Occasionally  she  was  seen  carrying  a cradle, 
and  when  she  vanished,  examination  showed  that  the  resting- 
place  of  what  was  believed  to  be  an  infant  contained  nothing 
but  an  obsidian  knife,  such  as  was  used  in  human  sacrifice.4 
There  are  also  indications  that  she  presided  over  childbirth. 

TEMPLES 

Ciuacoatl  had  a temple  called  the  Tlillan  Calviecac,  or 
“ Black  College,”  where  dwelt  those  priests  devoted  to  her 
service.6 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

The  circumstance  that  Ciuacoatl  appears  with  the  skull 
of  a dead  person  leads  to  the  conclusion  that,  besides  being  an 
earth-deity,  she  had  phantom  or  underworld  characteristics 
— a common  connexion  for  a grain-goddess.  From  her 
hymn  we  gather  that  she  has  a magical  influence  over  the 
plantation  and  growth  of  the  maize.  She  is,  perhaps,  a 
prototype  of  the  Ciuateteo,  the  disappointed  and  vengeful 
women  who  had  died  in  their  first  childbed,  and  the  myth 
of  her  cradle  containing  the  sacrificial  knife  is  eloquent  of 
the  connexion  of  the  Earth-goddess  with  human  sacrifice. 
Her  martial  character,  also,  is  apparent  and  is  a concomitant 

1 Lib.  ii,  c.  ii. 

3 Brasseur  de  Bourbourg,  Hist.  Nat.  Civ.  du  Mex.  (quoting  a Cakchiquel 
MS.),  vol.  i,  p.  248. 

3 Bk.  i,  c.  vi. 

4 Sahagun,  bk.  i,  c.  vi. 

6 Idem,  bk.  2,  Appendix. 


COATLICUE 


183 


of  her  agricultural  and  sacrificial  significance.  From  her 
association  with  Mixcoatl,  the  Mimixcoa,  the  Chichimec 
gods,  as  from  her  name,  Quilaztli,  and  her  symbol  it  is  evident 
that  she  is  connected  with  the  Chichimec  or  native  Indian 
cult.  Her  connexion  with  childbed  is  clear  from  one  of  the 
addresses  given  by  Sahagun,  who  states  that  the  midwife 
exhorted  the  woman  in  childbed  to  be  strong  and  valiant  as 
was  Ciuacoatl.  “ Who  first  bore  children,”  in  allusion  to  a 
myth  mentioned  by  Gama  (pt.  i,  p.  39),  who  says  that  she 
gave  birth  to  two  children,  male  and  female,  whence  sprung 
the  human  race — a story  I have  failed  to  trace  elsewhere, 
except  in  Clavigero. 

COATLICUE  = “ SERPENT-SKIRT  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico-Tenochtitlan. 

Minor  Name  : Coatlantonan  = “ Our  Serpent  Mother.” 
Relationship  : Mother  of  Uitzilopochtli  by  Mixcoatl  ; mother  of 
Coyolxauhqui  and  the  Centzonuitznaua  ; wifoof  Tezcatzoncatl 
or  Izquitecatl. 

Festival  : Feast  of  the  flower-sellers  in  the  second  month,  tlacaxi- 
peuliztli. 

Symbol  : The  eagle’s  foot. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS. — The  face  of  the  goddess  is  painted  with 
white  infusorial  earth  of  the  kind  known  as  tigitl.  She 
wears  a crown  of  eagle-feathers  and  a white  overdress.  Her 
skirt  is  formed  of  serpents,  as  her  name  implies.  On  her  feet 
she  wears  white  sandals  and  shells.  Her  shield  is  inset  with 
eagle-feathers,  and  she  bears  a serpent-staff  in  her  hand. 

STATUES 

Much  argument  has  circled  around  the  colossal  statue  of 
Coatlicue  (see  Introduction)  which  formerly  adorned  one  of 
the  entrances  to  the  great  temple  of  Mexico,  and  which  was 
evidently  supported  by  upright  stones,  so  that  it  formed  the 
key-stone  of  a gateway  where  it  could  be  seen  by  all  who 
passed  in  and  out  of  the  temple.  It  has  been  assigned  to 
more  than  one  goddess,  and  when  it  was  disinterred  amongst 


184  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


other  relics  in  the  course  of  making  new  drains  in  the  Plaza 
Mayor  of  Mexico  in  August  1790,  it  was  placed  in  the  court 
of  the  university  and  there  worshipped  by  the  Indians,  who 
decked  it  with  flowers.  The  Mexican  antiquaries,  relying 
on  a statement  by  Boturini 1 in  which  he  states  that  Uitzilo- 
pochtli  was  accompanied  by  the  goddess  “ Teoyaomiqui,” 
regarded  the  two-faced  idol  as  being  bi-sexual  and  as  a com- 
posite figure  of  both  gods,  and  this  notion  was  perpetuated 
by  Gama  in  his  Dos  Piedras.  Payne,  in  his  History  of  the 
New  World,  appends  a long  and  very  “ sane”  note  to  his 
description  of  it,  sneers  at  the  conclusions  of  the  Mexican 
antiquaries,  and  states,  somewhat  dogmatically,  that  it  must 
be  regarded  as  a representation  of  Chicomecoatl.  But  it  is 
undoubtedly  Coatlicue.  In  the  first  place  that  goddess  had 
a right  to  a position  in  the  temple  of  Uitzilopochtli  as  his 
mother,  secondly  the  idol  wears  the  skirt  of  serpents  which 
is  implied  in  her  name.  But  this  notwithstanding,  the 
stone  figure  has  obviously  a symbolical  meaning  as  illustrating 
the  whole  circumstances  of  human  sacrifice.  The  head  is 
formed  by  the  junction  of  the  heads  of  two  serpents,  which 
symbolize  the  two  streams  of  blood  welling  out  from  a decapi- 
tated body.  The  flayed  skin  of  the  victim  is  hung  in  front 
and  is  shown  knotted  behind  as  in  the  statue  of  Xipe  found 
at  the  Castillo  de  Teayo.  The  cups  from  which  octli  was 
drunk  are  stuck  in  front  of  the  flayed  human  skin,  and  a skull 
adorns  the  serpent-skirt  before  and  behind.  Through  all 
these  attributes,  however,  the  personality  of  the  serpent- 
woman  goddess  can  be  sensed  as  much  as  observed.8 

Other  statues  and  paintings  of  Coatlicue  uphold  the  theory 
that  she  is  represented  by  this  idol.  One  found  in  the  Calle 
de  las  Escalerillas,  and  others  recovered  from  the  Calle  de 
Colisco  in  Mexico  City,  show  her  as  having  the  face  of  a skull. 
In  the  latter  she  wears  a peculiar  flat  headdress  with  maize- 
like motifs  depending  from  the  back,  and  her  hair  recalls 
the  ruffled  “ night-hair  ” of  Mictlantecutli.  Around  her 
body  are  strange  step-motifs  which  constitute  the  ends  of 
parallel  lines  ; and  from  her  ears  depend  large  cotton  plugs. 

1 Idea,  p.  27  ; vol.  i,  pp.  419  ff.  * SeeJIntroduction,  pp.  14,  16. 


MYTH  OF  COATLICUE 


185 


She  wears  a girdle  of  skulls  with  serpentine  noses.  Another 
relief  of  her  found  in  the  Calle  de  las  Escalerillas  is,  however, 
much  more  enlightening  than  the  foregoing.  In  this  spirited 
work  she  wears  what  is  evidently  a 'panache  of  stone  knives 
or  malinalli  grass,  the  face  is  that  of  a skull,  she  has  the  claws 
of  a jaguar,  and  the  skirt  of  entwined  serpents  is  noticeable. 
Be  all  this  as  it  may,  however,  the  insignia  of  the  goddess  is 
by  no  means  a fixed  quantity,  and  considerable  research  is 
necessary  before  anything  like  certainty  can  be  arrived  at. 

MYTH 

Sahagun  (bk.  iii,  c.  i)  related  of  this  goddess  that  near  the 
ancient  city  of  Tulla  or  Tulan  rose  the  mountain  of  Coatepec 
(“Serpent  Mountain”),  where  lived  a woman  named 
Coatlicue,  mother  of  certain  “ Indians  ” called  Cenzon- 
uitznaua.  She  had  a daughter  called  Coyolxauhqui.  Coatlicue, 
who  was  a widow  and  very  devout,  climbed  each  day  to  the 
mountain  of  Coatepec  to  do  penance,  and  on  one  occasion, 
as  she  reached  its  summit,  a little  ball  of  feathers  resembling 
a roll  of  thread  or  twine  fell  upon  her.  Picking  it  up,  she 
placed  it  in  her  bosom,  and  later  was  unable  to  find  it. 
Shortly  afterwards  she  became  enceinte.  Her  children, 
observing  her  condition,  were  indignant,  and  Coyolxauhqui 
advised  her  brothers  to  slay  their  mother  for  the  shame  she 
had  put  upon  them.  Her  unborn  infant  whispered  to  her 
to  be  of  good  cheer.  But  one  day  her  sons  armed  themselves 
and  prepared  to  slay  her.  One  of  them,  however,  called 
Quauitlicac,  whispered  to  the  supernatural  child  that  treason 
was  toward,  and  at  the  moment  when,  headed  by  Coyolxauh- 
qui, Coatlicue’s  children  came  to  dispatch  her,  Uitzilopochtli 
was  born,  fully  armed.  Falling  upon  his  brothers  and  sister 
with  his  terrible  weapon,  the  xiuhcoatl , or  fiery  serpent,  he 
speedily  dispatched  them  all.1 

FESTIVAL 

Tlacaxipeuliztli. — Sahagun  (bk.  ii,  c.  22)  relates  that  on 
the  second  day  of  this  month  the  people  of  the  temple  quarter 

1 See  Uitzilopochtli,  pp.  73  ff. 


186  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


of  Coatlan  offered  flowers  in  the  temple  and  made  music 
during  the  entire  day  in  honour  of  Coatlicue.  These  flowers 
were  the  first-fruits  of  the  year,  were  offered  up  by  the  master 
florists,  who  had  a great  devotion  to  the  goddess,  and  none 
of  the  blossoms  in  their  gardens  might  be  smelt  until  these 
bouquets  had  been  offered  up  in  the  temple  of  Coatlicue. 
They  made  for  this  feast  tamallis  called  tzatzapaltamalli 
(“  sharp-tasting  herb  cakes  ”). 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Coatlicue  is,  in  one  of  her  aspects,  undoubtedly  the  flower- 
covered  earth  of  spring,  from  whom,  as  it  were,  the  sun 
(Uitzilopochtli)  is  reborn.  Her  serpent-skirt  is  probably 
symbolic  of  the  circumstance  that,  at  the  season  which  she 
represents,  the  earth  is  clothed  with  the  rain  as  with  a gar- 
ment. The  myth  which  makes  her  a pious  widow  is  obviously 
of  late,  and  probably  of  hierophantic,  origin.  In  my  view 
Uitzilopochtli  is  chiefly  her  son  in  his  naualli  or  disguise  of  a 
humming-bird.  The  humming-bird  sucks  from  the  breasts 
of  earth  as  a child  from  its  mother’s.  But  the  myth  is  highly 
conglomerate,  and,  as  we  possess  it,  is  obviously  the  result  of 
the  fusion  of  several  varying  conceptions  of  the  two  principal 
figures.  Coatlicue’s  appearance  as  a serpent  in  her  great 
statue  which  has  been  described  above,  and  her  name  of 
Coatlantonan,  “ Our  Serpent  Mother,”  in  my  view  tend  to 
identify  her  with  the  earth  in  its  form  of  dragon,  serpent,  or 
cipactli,  regarding  which  hypothesis  the  reader  is  referred  to 
my  remarks  in  the  Introduction. 

It  is  not  improbable  that,  like  Xochiquetzal,  Coatlicue  is 
one  of  those  mountain  goddesses  from  whose  sacred  heights 
the  rain  descended  upon  the  parched  fields.  This  seems  likely 
from  the  name  of  her  abode,  Coatepetl{“  Serpent  Mountain  ”), 
the  serpents  of  which  her  skirt  is  composed  being  symbolical, 
perhaps,  of  the  stream  flowing  from  the  tarns  or  pools  situated 
on  its  lower  acclivities.  That  such  a mountain  actually 
existed  in  the  vicinity  of  Tollan  is  proved  by  the  statement 
of  Sahagun.  Uitzilopochtli  (q.v.)  is  thus  the  sun  which  rises 
out  of  the  mountain,  or  is  “ born  ” from  it,  armed  with  the 


XOCH I QUETZAL 


187 


xiuhcoatl,  or  fire-snake,  the  red  dawn,  with  which  he  slays  his 
sister  Coyolxauhqui,  whose  insignia  show  her  to  represent 
the  moon,  and  puts  the  stars  to  flight. 

XOCHI QUETZAL  = “ FLOWER  FEATHER  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Plateau  of  Analiuac  ; Tlaxcallan  ; Tlalhuica. 
Minor  Names  : 

Ce  atl  = “ One  Water.” 

Ce  Mazatl  (Calendar  date)  = “ One  Deer.” 

Mazateotl  = “ Deer  Goddess.” 

Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  twentieth  day  ( xochitl ) and  of  the 
nineteenth  “ week  ” (ce  quauhtli). 

Compass  Direction  : West. 

Festivals  : 

Tepeilhuitl  (Tlalhuica). 

Quecholli  (Tlaxcallan). 

Chicome  xochitl  (Mexico). 

Relationship  : The  first  woman,  and  thus  companion  of  Piltzintecutli 
(the  Sun-god)  ; otherwise,  wife  of  Tlaloc,  abducted  by  Tczcat- 
lipoca. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  9 : Here  the  goddess  is  represented 
as  wearing  an  upper  garment  of  diversified  pattern,  finished 
with  a variegated  edging.  Her  shawl  is  painted  in  the 
chalchihuitl  colours,  and  from  it  depend  two  strings  or  ribbons 
of  a dark  shade,  completed  with  a flower.  Her  nose-plate 
is  blue  and  is  formed  rather  after  the  fashion  of  the  butterfly 
design,  while  her  helmet-mask  represents  a quetzal- bird. 
In  sheet  58  she  is  vis-a-vis  with  the  Death-god  and  is  garbed 
like  an  earth-deity  with  a many-coloured  robe.  Her  hair 
is  dressed  like  that  of  the  Zapotec  women,  that  is,  two  tresses 
are  twisted  up  like  horns  and  secured  with  parti- coloured 
bands.  On  the  same  sheet  (next  picture)  she  confronts 
one  of  her  servitors  or  priests  ( tlamacazque ),  and  her  garments 
in  this  place  are  very  similar  to  those  already  described. 
In  the  next  illustration  the  only  addition  to  her  costume 
is  a wreath  of  flowers,  but  under  her  arm  she  holds  a quetzal- 
bird  and  sits  opposite  a red  Tezcatlipoca.  On  sheet  59  she 
is  represented  in  the  first  place  opposite  the  tlamacazque , 


188  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


and  in  the  following  picture  confronts  a naked  prostitute. 
Between  these  figures  is  her  servitor,  surprised  in  the  act  of 
pressing  the  courtesan’s  breasts.  This  female  is  characterized 
by  her  wearing  of  Xochiquetzal’s  shawl,  hair-dressing,  and 
the  hieroglyph  of  the  warrior  caste  (shield  and  spears)  shown 
above  her  head.  In  the  lowest  row  of  the  same  sheet  the 
goddess  is  seen  opposite  the  Vulture-god,  Tlacacozcaquauhtli. 
In  the  following  sheets  of  the  codex  her  aspect  and  garb 
are  practically  similar  to  those  described  above,  with  the 
exception  of  sheet  CO,  where  she  appears  in  the  act  of  par- 
turition, with  the  double  head  and  certain  of  the  insignia 
of  Quaxolotl,  being  delivered  by  Quetzalcoatl  in  the  charac- 
ter of  Xolotl.  In  the  region  of  her  mouth  is  an  angular  line 
of  red. 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  42  : Here  Xochiquetzal  is 
adorned  by  a wreath  of  flowers  and  faces  her  servant.  On 
sheet  41  we  observe  that  her  cheek  is  painted  with  a round 
red  spot,  like  that  of  the  Sun-god,  whilst  her  head  is  adorned 
with  quetzal- feathers,  and  the  quetzal- bird  is  held  under 
her  arm.  She  is  ensconced  on  a jaguar  skin,  and  on  her 
head  is  the  wreath  of  flowers  with  two  feather  tufts,  which 
is  especially  characteristic  of  her.  On  her  face  is  depicted 
a red,  angular  line.  Opposite  is  the  figure  of  her  priest,  and 
between  them  is  a headless  woman,  whose  head  is  replaced 
by  a flowering  tree.  On  sheet  39  she  is  shown  as  wearing 
a quetzal- bird  mask  and  a blue,  step-shaped  nose-plate, 
while  her  face-paint  is  elaborately  executed.  In  this  picture 
is  seen  issuing  from  her  body  a quetzal-iea.ther  ornament, 
symbolic  of  a newly-born  child.  In  one  hand  she  holds  a 
jewelled  ornament,  and  in  the  other  an  ear  of  maize,  and  she 
wears  the  opossum  wristlets  applied  to  women  in  travail. 
Her  new-born  twins  are  seated  beside  her.  In  another 
part  of  this  codex  she  is  represented  as  facing  various  male 
deities  in  characteristic  positions,  which  are  evidently  more 
typical  of  her  personality  than  any  insignia. 

Codex  Laud. — Sheet  38  : She  is  here  represented  facing 
the  tlamacazque  in  a kneeling  attitude,  with  her  hair  dressed 
in  a peculiar  manner.  Sheet  35  shows  her  similarly  repre- 


XOCHIQUETZAL  AND  HER  SYMBOLS. 
(Coder  Borbnnicus,  sheet  19.) 


8) 


HYMN  OF  XOCIIIQUETZAT. 


189 


sented  to  her  picture  in  Codex  Vaticanus  B , sheet  39.  Her 
twins  are  seated  one  on  the  instep  curve  of  each  foot. 

Pottery  Figures. — Various  pottery  figures  of  the  goddess 
found  in  the  Valley  of  Mexico  are  to  be  seen  in  the  Ulide 
Collection,  Berlin.  In  one  of  these  she  is  represented  holding 
an  infant,  and  her  general  attire  agrees  with  the  manuscript 
representations  of  her.  Her  hair  is  dressed  in  the  Zapotec 
style,  rising  up  in  two  horns  and  secured  with  plaited  bands. 
The  shawl  or  tippet  with  a V-shape  in  front  is  a constant 
factor,  and  in  one  example  is  scalloped,  in  another  plain, 
while  in  the  third  it  ends  in  the  chalchihuitl  ornament  and 
a bead  or  ball-fringing.  In  the  Seler  collection  is  a curious 
little  statuette  from  Cholula,  in  which  the  goddess  is  again 
represented  as  carrying  a child.  She  wears  a flat  cap,  almost 
like  that  of  a cook  or  chef,  the  precise  significance  of  which 
escapes  me,  unless  it  be  a local  headdress,  as  some  other 
examples  in  the  same  collection  would  seem  to  prove.  In  a 
relief  found  at  Zanja  de  la  Piedra  Labrada,  near  Castillo 
de  Teayo,  she  is  represented  opposite  Tlaloc,  as  if  to  show  her 
connexion  with  rain.  Her  headdress  in  this  place  would 
seem  to  be  a compromise  between  the  Zapotec  hairdressing 
and  a motif  representative  of  florescence.  She  wears  the 
same  V-shaped  tippet,  which  is  here  adorned  with  three 
tassels,  and  she  has  the  stepped  nose-ornament.  In  her 
right  hand  she  carries  a sceptre  of  water-rushes,  the  same  as 
that  held  by  Tlaloc,  and  in  her  left  the  staff  commonly  seen 
in  the  representation  of  gods  in  the  Sahagun  MS.  (Biblioteca 
del  Palacio),  and  which  seems  to  me  to  be  a development 
of  the  chicaunaztli , or  rain-rattle. 

MYTHS 

Perhaps  the  most  important  of  these  is  that  found  in  the 
Sahagun  collection  of  songs  or  hymns  (the  ninth  item) : 

Out  of  the  land  of  the  rain  and  the  mist 

I,  Xochiquetzal,  come. 

Out  of  Tamoanchan. 

The  pious  Piltzintecutli  weeps  ; 

He  seeks  Xochiquetzal. 

To  the  land  of  corruption  I must  go. 


190  DEITIES  OF  TIIE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


The  goddess  here  declares  that,  like  other  fertility  goddesses, 
she  comes  from  the  fruitful  supernatural  country  of  Tamaon- 
chan,  the  home  of  the  maize.  Piltzintecutli,  the  Sun-god, 
seeks  her,  but,  like  Ishtar  in  Babylonian  myth,  she  must 
betake  herself  to  the  Underworld,  until  it  is  once  more  time 
to  resume  her  growth-assisting  labours.  We  have  here  good 
grounds  for  positing  the  existence  of  a popular  myth  which 
would  seem  to  have  recounted  how  the  divine  lovers  dwelt 
happily  in  Tamoanchan  until  Xochiquetzal  was  forced  to 
quit  the  blest  abode  or  was  carried  off,  and  was  sought  for 
by  the  Sun-god,  a myth  like  that  of  Proserpine  or  Orpheus. 
It  may  refer  to  the  sun  seeking  the  flower,  or  may  have  a 
bearing  upon  the  myth  of  Ixnextli,  a variant  of  Xochiquetzal, 
who  was  expelled  from  Paradise,  and  of  whom  the  inter- 
preter of  Codex  V aticanus  A says  : “ Ixnextli,  who  is  the 
same  as  Eve,  is  always  weeping,  her  eyes  dim  with  ashes, 
a rose  in  her  hand,  emblematical  of  her  grief,  being  in  con- 
sequence of  her  having  gathered  it.  And  accordingly  they 
celebrate  a fast  every  eight  years  on  account  of  this  calami- 
tous event ; the  fast  was  on  bread  and  water.  They  fasted 
on  the  eight  signs  preceding  the  entrance  of  the  rose,  and 
when  that  sign  arrived,  they  prepared  themselves  for  the 
celebration  of  the  festival.  They  affirm  that  every  series 
of  five  days  comprised  in  this  calendar  was  dedicated  to  this 
fall,  because  on  such  a day  Eve  sinned.  They  were  accord- 
ingly enjoined  to  bathe  themselves  on  this  night  in  order  to 
escape  disease.”  Regarding  this  myth  the  interpreter  of  the 
Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  says  : “ They  represented  her  as 
Eve  always  weeping  and  looking  at  her  husband,  Adam.  She 
is  called  Ysnextli,  which  signifies  ‘eyes  blind  with  ashes’  ; 
and  this  refers  to  the  time  subsequent  to  her  sinning  by 
plucking  the  roses.  They  accordingly  declare  that  they  are 
still  unable  to  look  up  to  heaven,  and  in  recollection  of  the 
happy  state  which  she  lost,  they  fasted  every  eight  years 
on  account  of  this  fall.”  It  is  significant  that  the  goddess 
pictured  beside  this  statement  is  called  “ Suchiquezal.” 
Diego  Munoz  Camargo,  in  his  Historia  de  Tlaxcala,  equates 
Xochiquetzal  with  Venus  and  states  that : “ She  dwells 


(From  Codex  Borgia.) 


(From  Coder  Fejtrvary -Mayer.) 

FORMS  OF  XOCHIQUETZAL. 


1901 


XOCHIQUETZAL. 

(From  the  Codex  FejtrvAry-Mayer.) 


THE  PARADISE  OF  XOCIIIQUETZAL 


191 


above  the  nine  heavens  in  a very  pleasant  and  delectable 
place,  accompanied  and  guarded  by  many  people  and  waited 
on  by  other  women  of  the  rank  of  goddesses,  where  are  many 
delights  of  fountains,  brooks,  flower-gardens,  and  without 
her  wanting  for  anything,  and  that  where  she  sojourned 
she  was  guarded  and  sheltered  from  the  gaze  of  the  people, 
and  that  in  her  retinue  she  had  a great  many  dwarfs  and 
hunchbacks,  jesters,  and  buffoons,  who  entertained  her  with 
music  and  dancing  and  whom  she  sent  as  her  confidants 
and  messengers  to  the  other  gods,  and  that  their  chief  occu- 
pation was  the  spinning  and  weaving  of  sumptuous  artistic 
fabrics,  and  that  they  were  painted  so  beautifully  and  ele- 
gantly that  nothing  finer  could  be  found  amongst  mortals. 
But  the  place  where  she  dwelt  was  called  Tamohuanichan 
Xochitl  ihcacan,  Chicuhnauh-nepaniuhcan,  Itzehecaya,  that 
is,  ‘ the  house  of  the  descent  or  of  birth,  the  place  where 
are  the  flowers,  the  ninefold  enchained,  the  place  of  the 
fresh,  cool  winds.’  And  every  year  she  was  honoured  with 
a great  feast,  to  which  many  people  from  all  parts  were 
gathered  in  her  temple.”  He  continues  : “ They  say  that 
she  had  formerly  been  the  spouse  of  the  Rain-god,  Tlaloc, 
but  that  Tezcatlipoca  had  abducted  her,  and  brought  her 
to  the  nine  heavens,  and  made  her  the  goddess  of  love.  And 
then  there  was  another  goddess,  Matlalcueye,  the  god- 
dess to  whom  were  attributed  witchcraft  and  soothsaying. 
Her  Tlaloc  had  made  his  consort  after  Tezcatlipoca  had  carried 
off  his  wife  Xochiquetzal.”  1 

Another  myth,  given  by  Boturini,  recounts  her  temptation 
of  the  holy  ascetic  Yappan,  who  dwelt  in  a desert  place  in 
order  to  lead  a continent  and  solitary  life,  so  that  he  might 
win  the  favour  of  the  gods.  He  took  up  his  abode  on  a rock 
called  Tehuehuetl,  but  the  gods  conceived  a doubt  of  his 
piety,  and  sent  an  enemy  of  his,  Yaotl  (enemy),  to  watch  his 
movements.  Even  this  bitter  foe  found  nothing  to  cavil 
at  in  his  conduct,  and  women  sent  by  the  gods  to  lead  him 
from  the  paths  of  rectitude  were  sternly  repulsed.  The 
divine  beings  were  about  to  consider  his  apotheosis,  when 

i Bk.  i,  c.  xix. 


192  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


Xochiquetzal,  feeling  that  her  reputation  as  a tempter  of 
men  was  at  stake,  angrily  assured  them  that  she  was  able 
to  effect  his  seduction.  Descending  to  earth,  she  sought 
out  the  hermit,  whom  she  assured  of  her  admiration  and 
esteem,  and  asked  by  what  path  she  might  ascend  to  his 
rocky  seat.  All  unsuspicious  of  her  intent,  Yappan  de- 
scended from  his  place  on  the  rock  and  assisted  her  to  climb 
the  rugged  eminence.  Yappan  forgot  his  vow  of  chastity, 
and  when  the  goddess  had  departed,  found  himself  deserted 
by  the  angry  gods  to  the  mercies  of  his  enemy,  Yaotl,  who 
slew  him  out  of  hand.  The  gods  transformed  the  slain 
man  into  a scorpion,  and  Yaotl  having  also  slain  Yappan’s 
wife,  Tlahuitzin,  whom  he  had  abandoned  for  the  life  ascetic, 
she  was  transformed  into  an  animal  of  the  same  species, 
and  crawling  under  a stone,  found  her  husband  there.  But 
the  gods,  wrathful  at  Yaotl’s  excessive  cruelty,  changed 
him  into  a locust.1 

FESTIVALS 

Chicomexochitl  (“  Seven  Flower”). — In  the  signer  ocelotl, 
on  the  day  chicomexochitl,  the  artists  united  to  hold  festival 
to  the  goddess,  and  the  laundresses,  says  Sahagun,8  fasted 
forty  days.  “ They  joined  together,  twenty  or  more,  to 
obtain  a better  quality  of  pictures  and  weaves  and  to  this 
end  offered  up  quails  and  incense.”  This  was  one  of  the 
movable  feasts. 

In  an  illuminating  passage  in  his  disquisition  upon  the 
Aubin  tonalamatl  (p.  123)  Seler  says  : “ As  I have  remarked 
at  the  opening  of  the  section,  the  goddess  Xochiquetzal  is 
properly  the  expression  of  the  day-sign  xochitl.  But  owing 
to  the  transference  of  the  series  of  rulers  of  the  day-signs 
to  the  weeks  in  the  peculiar  way  affected  by  the  calendar- 
makers,  that  is,  by  a general  shifting  of  one  member,’ 

1 Idea,  pp.  63-66.  This  myth  seems  to  me  to  show  vestiges  of  a belief  in 
the  theory  of  the  transmigration  of  souls,  and  to  indicate  that  the  ascetic, 
almost  on  the  borders  of  what  is  known  in  Buddhistic  belief  as  “ arahatship,” 
or  promotion  to  a higher  life,  was  condemned  for  his  lapse  to  recommence 
existence  once  more  under  a low  form  of  life. 

2 Bk.  i,  c.  xix,  appendix.  3 See  Appendix  in  the  Tonalamatl,  “Day-signs.” 


THE  QUECHOLLI  FESTIVAL  193 

Xochiquetzal  has  been  brought  into  association  with  the  sign 
ce  quauhtli  (one  eagle).  But  in  Telleriano-Remensis  at  this 
week  the  hand-mark  1 which  indicates  the  feast-day  proper 
of  the  ruler  of  the  week  stands  at  the  first  day  itself — the 
sign  ce  quauhtli,  that  induced  the  calendar-makers  to  effect 
the  above-described  dislocation  in  the  second  half  of  the 
list  of  rulers.  For  more  than  one  reason  the  day  ce  quauhtli 
must  really  have  seemed  to  the  priestly  savants  specially 
appropriate  to  the  goddess  Xochiquetzal,  and  above  all, 
because  this  day  was  one  of  the  live  which  fell  at  the  beginning 
or  western  quarter  of  the  tonalamatl  disposed  in  columns  of 
five  members.  Hence  these  five  days  were  collectively 
regarded  as  dedicated  to  the  earth-goddesses,  and  as  the  days 
in  which  the  ghostly  women  dwelling  in  the  west,  the  Ciua- 
teted,  swooped  down  upon  earth,  striking  the  children  with 
epilepsy  and  beguiling  the  men  to  lust  and  sin.”  These 
Ciuateteo  were  stregce,  witches,  succubi,  and  their  character- 
istics, which  are  touched  upon  in  the  section  dealing  with 
Tlazolteotl,  will  be  more  fully  outlined  elsewhere. 

Quecholli  — The  people  of  Tlaxcallan  held  a festival  to 
Xochiquetzal  in  the  month  quecholli,  when  the  Mexicans 
celebrated  the  feast  of  Mixcoatl.  At  the  Tlaxcaltec  feast 
numbers  of  young  women  were  sacrificed  to  the  goddess, 

“ to  the  honour  of  love,”  and  the  prostitutes  were  also  in 
the  habit  of  offering  themselves  for  immolation,  we  are  in- 
formed by  Torquemada,®  first  haling  the  “ honest  ” women 
through  the  mire  and  subjecting  them  to  the  foulest  abuse. 
The  Tlalhuica,  who  lived  in  the  hot  lands  south  of  Mexico, 
themselves,  like  the  Tlaxcaltecs,  a people  of  Nahua  race, 
held  a festival  in  honour  of  Xochiquetzal  in  the  month  tepeil- 
huitl,  which  the  Mexicans  dedicated  to  the  Tlaloque,  gods 
of  rain,  as  is  related  by  the  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Maglia- 
becchiano.  Torquemada,  too,5  states  that  the  Tlaxcaltecs 
sacrificed  many  children  to  Xochiquetzal  and  to  the  moun- 
tain-gods (Tlaloque)  evidently  at  this  season.  Xochiquetzal 
was  also  connected  with  the  festival  of  the  atamalqualiztli, 

1 A diacritical  point.  2 Bk.  x,  c.  xxxv.  * Bk.  x,  c.  xxxi. 

13 


194  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


celebrated  every  eight  years.  In  the  picture  of  that  feast 
in  the  Sahagun  MS.  we  observe  her  seated  at  a loom.  From 
these  considerations  it  is  manifest  that  the  verdurous  and 
“ watery  ” attributes  of  the  goddess  connected  her  with 
the  Tlaloque,  but  that  she  was  not  actually  of  their  com- 
pany. 

TEMPLES 

In  Tlalhuica,  not  far  from  Cuernavaca  or  Quauhnauac, 
stands  the  pyramid  of  Xochicalco,  one  of  the  most  perfect 
specimens  extant  of  Nahua  architectural  skill.  There  is 
reason  to  believe  that  Xochiquetzal  was  originally  the  local 
deity  of  one  of  these  mountains  the  waters  from  which  irrigate 
the  fields  below,1  and  it  seems  probable  that  the  ieocalli  of 
Xochicalco  typified  this  eminence.  We  know  that  the  teot- 
lalpan,  or  “ Place  of  Divine  Earth,”  in  the  sacred  precinct 
at  Mexico,  was  sacred  to  Mixcoatl,  a deity  who  was  perhaps 
of  Otomi  origin,  and  that  it  was  probably  symbolic  of  a 
mountain  in  the  Otomi  country  of  which  he  was  the  presid- 
ing deity,  so  that  the  probability  is  borne  out  by  analogy. 
In  the  country  of  the  Tlaxcaltecs  stood  the  heights  of 
Xochtecatl,  “ Goddess  of  the  Flowery  Land,”  a mountain, 
according  to  Torquemada,  about  six  miles  in  circumference, 
which  was  the  nucleus  of  a settlement,  and  was  surrounded 
by  graves  hewn  out  of  the  solid  rock.  This,  perhaps,  pro- 
vides a fuller  illustration  of  the  theory  advanced  above. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

The  original  home  of  Xochiquetzal  seems  to  have  been 
among  the  Tlalhuica  and  Tlaxcaltecs.  But  as  the  latter 
were  closely  connected  with  the  Mexicans  racially,  there  is 
good  reason  to  believe  that  she  was  also  an  original  member 
of  their  pantheon.  In  any  case  she  had  a place  in  the  metro- 
politan calendar,  and  the  contention  of  the  compilers  of  both 
interpretative  codices,  as  well  as  of  the  native  author  of  the 
picture  writings  in  the  llistoria  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sus 
Pinturas,  that  she  is  to  be  equated  with  Tonacaciuatl,  the 

1 Seler,  Commentary  on  Aubin  Tonalamatl,  p.  119. 


XOCHIQUETZAL  AS  GODDESS  OF  LOVE  195 


female  member  of  the  creative  pair,  seems  to  have  been  a 
later  development. 

But  Xochiquetzal  is  more  especially  the  goddess  of  flowers, 
the  female  counterpart  of  Xochipilli-Macuilxochitl.  As  has 
been  mentioned,  she  was  probably  at  first  the  goddess  who 
presided  over  some  lofty  mountain  whose  streams  watered 
the  sun-dried  plains  beneath  and  clothed  them  in  abundant 
florescence,  perhaps  that  very  mountain  of  Xochtecatl  to 
which  allusion  has  been  made,  and  which  stood  in  Tlaxcaltec 
territory.  As  the  “ feminine  ” of  Xochipilli,  however,  she 
certainly  partook  of  his  festive  and  frivolous  character,  and 
thus  presided  over  the  song,  the  dance,  and  all  sportive  amuse- 
ments. By  a further  slight  effort  of  imagination  she  came  to 
be  regarded  as  the  goddess  of  illicit  love,  or  of  the  sensuous 
side  of  intercourse  between  the  sexes,  not  so  much  a goddess 
of  degraded  animal  passion,  like  Tlazolteotl,  as  a figure  bear- 
ing a close  resemblance  to  the  Apsarasas  of  Hindu  myth, 
lovely  and  voluptuous,  and,  like  them,  addicted  to  the  game 
of  throwing  the  dice  ( patolli ).  A further  step  established 
her  as  the  patron  goddess  of  the  prostitutes  who  existed  for 
the  pleasure  of  the  unmarried  warriors  and  who  resided  with 
them  in  the  great  common  house  of  the  bachelors.  From  this 
circumstance  arose  the  obscene  character  of  the  feast  of 
Quecholli  among  the  Tlaxcaltecs  and  the  Tepeilhuitl  festival 
among  the  Tlalhuica. 

Xochiquetzal  was  also  in  some  measure  the  patroness  of 
pregnant  women,  according  to  the  interpreter  of  Codex 
V aticanus  A,  and  these  worshipped  and  sacrificed  to  her  in 
order  that  they  should  not  give  birth  to  girls.  She  is  herself 
figured  in  Codex  Borgia  as  the  great  parturient,  and  in  Codex 
Vaticanus  B (sheet  39)  as  has  been  indicated  above. 

She  had  also,  like  Xochipilli,  an  artistic  significance,  as 
the  patroness  of  weavers  and  artists.  She  was  revered  by 
the  women  who  practised  the  former  art,  the  invention  of 
spinning  and  weaving  was  attributed  to  her,  and  many  kinds 
of  craftsmen  paid  her  honours.  She  had,  moreover,  a magical 
side  to  her  character ; in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl  she  is  seated 
opposite  the  dancing  wizard,  and  she  is  furthermore  one  of 


196  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


the  Tzitzimime,  or  deities  of  the  darksome  night,  among 
whom  she  is  symbolized  by  the  spider. 

MACUILXOCHITL  = “FIVE  FLOWER,”  OR 
XOCII1P1LLI  = “ FLOWER  PRINCE” 

Area  of  Worship  : Tehuacan,  Cozcatlan,  Teotitlan  del  Camino, 

Oaxaca,  Mexico. 

Minor  Names  : 

Auia  teotl  = “ God  of  Pleasure.” 

Mazatl  = “ Deer.” 

Auiatl  = “ The  Jovial.” 

Symbol  : The  sign  five-flower. 

Calendar  Place  : 

Ruler  of  the  eleventh  day-sign,  ozomatli. 

Seventh  of  the  thirteen  day-lords. 

Ruler  of  the  twentieth  day-count,  xochitl. 

Festival  . The  Xochilhuill  (“  Feast  of  Flowers  ”),  one  of  the  mov- 
able feasts. 

Compass  Directions  : South  ; West. 

Relationship  : Brother  of  Ixlilton  ; son  of  Piltzintecutli. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA  ( as  Macuilxochitl) 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  15  : In  this  place  the  god  wears  as 
breast-ornament  a human  lower  jaw,  which,  combined  with 
the  green  band  to  which  it  is  tied  up,  may  possibly  express 
the  day-count  malinalli.  He  has  a large  feather  nape- 
ornament.  The  upper  part  of  his  face  is  white,  with  a dark 
band  over  the  nose  and  cheek,  and  white  painting  over  the 
mouth,  in  the  semblance  of  an  outspread  hand.  He  wears 
a cap  with  vertically  projecting  bands  painted  in  the  colours 
of  the  green  jewel  chalchihuitl. 

Sahagun  MS. — Here  he  is  represented  with  a white  hand 
painted  on  his  mouth  and  a feather  crown  surmounted  by  a 
crest. 

General. — Like  the  other  gods  of  dance  and  sport,  Macuilxo- 
chitl  wears  the  four  balls  of  the  toualli  emblem  on  his  shield 
and  sometimes  carries  the  staff  with  the  heart.  Like  Ixtlilton, 
he  had  probably  once  a bird’s-head  mask,  which  in  the  course 
of  his  evolution  degenerated  into  a feather  crest  and  a wing 


STONE  FIGURE  OF  MACUILXOCHITL. 
(In  the  Uhde  Collection,  Berlin.) 


190) 


STONE  FIGURE  OF  MAOUILXOCHITL 
(Found,  December  1901,  In  Mexico  City.) 


STATUES  OF  MACUILXOCHITL 


197 


on  his  back.  The  deterioration  of  this  feature  can  be 
observed  in  the  stone  effigies  of  his  counterpart  Xochipilli. 

STATUES 

A stone  figure  of  Macuilxochitl  found  in  Cuernavaca  repre- 
sents the  god  seated  in  a squatting  attitude,  and  it  is  evi- 
dently intended  to  show  him  as  an  onlooker  at  the  ball-game. 
He  wears  a pointed  headdress  or  mitre,  on  the  top  of  what 
would  seem  to  be  a cotton  head-covering.  A head  of  the 
god  in  stone  is  included  in  the  collection  of  the  Natural 
History  Museum  at  Vienna.  In  this  the  nose-plug  is  pro- 
minent and  he  wears  round  earrings.  The  wing-ornament 
stands  well  out  behind  the  head  and  the  face  seems  to  look 
out  of  a bird  helmet-mask,  on  both  sides  of  which  are  large, 
circular  holes,  through  which  feathers  or  cotton  ear-plugs 
fall.  The  difficulty  of  working  in  stone  has  evidently 
restrained  the  sculptor  from  representing  the  upper  and  lower 
portions  of  the  bird’s  beak,  and  the  helmet-mask  bears  a 
strong  resemblance  to  that  of  Xochipilli  in  the  Codex  Mag- 
liabecchiano,  if  the  beak  in  that  representation  were  removed. 
A statue  of  the  god  found  in  the  Calle  de  las  Escalerillas  in 
Mexico  City  on  December  13,  1900,  is  almost  identical  with 
the  first  of  those  two  statues,  and  agrees  with  the  second  in 
that  here  we  have  the  circular  holes  at  the  side  of  the  head- 
dress with  the  dependent  feathers  or  cotton  plug.  The  best 
known  of  the  representations  of  this  god,  however,  is  the  clay 
model  found  by  Seler  at  Teotitlan  del  Camino.  It  represents 
Macuilxochitl  in  a sitting  position  and  is  brilliantly  coloured. 
The  face  of  the  god  looks  out  of  a bird  helmet-mask,  highly 
conventionalized,  and  which  has  practically  lost  all  its  bird- 
like characteristics.  The  two  circular  holes  below  the  ear 
are,  however,  still  represented.  The  upper  part  of  the  face 
is  painted  yellow,  but  under  each  eye  is  an  oblong  patch 
painted  in  variegated  colours,  such  as  appears  on  the  faces 
of  the  gods  of  grain.  Around  the  mouth  is  a large  white 
patch,  in  which  we  may  see  the  white  hand  motif  conven- 
tionalized. The  body-paint  is  red  and  the  garment  white, 
except  that  portion  at  the  neck,  which  is  blue.  Small  golden 


198  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


bells  adorn  the  necklace  and  wristlets.  In  this  statuette 
we  have  evidently  a very  late  and  highly  developed  figure 
of  the  deity,  showing  a considerable  departure  from  the 
earlier  drawings  and  statues  of  him.  In  the  Anthropological 
Museum  at  Berlin  is  a stone  statue  of  Macuilxochitl,  also  in 
a squatting  attitude,  in  which  the  circular  motif  above  the 
ear,  with  its  accompanying  plug,  is  strongly  in  evidence. 
A number  of  stone  statuettes  of  the  god  were  found  at  Tepeaca 
in  the  state  of  Puebla  and  are  now  housed  in  the  Natural 
History  Museum  at  Vienna.  These  do  not  differ  from  the 
examples  already  described,  save  that  in  one  of  them  the 
Greek  fret-pattern  takes  the  place  of  the  circular  ear-plug 
motif.  A stone  figure  of  the  god  was  found  amid  the  ruins 
of  the  Castillo  de  Teayo,  a teocalli,  or  pyramid,  in  Vera  Cruz. 
In  this,  which  is  also  a squatting  figure,  the  god  is  covered 
by  a mantle  which  is  surmounted  by  the  bird’s  comb,  as  seen 
in  Magliabecchiano  and  elsewhere.  Around  the  head  are 
three  of  the  circular  holes  above  mentioned,  one  above  each 
ear  and  one  at  the  back  of  the  head,  from  which  depend  a 
double  strip  of  cotton  or  other  textile. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA  (as  Xochipilli) 

Codex  V aticanus  B. — Sheet  26  : In  this  MS.  the  god  is 
painted  a light  yellow  colour.  His  light  hair  is  bound  with 
a jewelled  strap  ornamented  on  the  frontal  side  with  a con- 
ventional bird’s  head.  Round  his  head  he  also  wears  the 
fillet  of  the  Sun-god,  ornamented  with  a feather  tuft.  As  a 
breast  ornament  he  has  a large  gold  disk  suspended  from  a 
broad  gold  chain,  hung  with  bells.  His  right  hand  clasps  a 
bundle  of  grass,  and  in  his  left  he  bears  a staff  embellished  with 
turquoise  mosaic  and  flowers,  probably  intended  for  a rattle- 
stick.  Above  the  twilight  symbol  of  the  west  in  the  water 
are  instruments  of  mortification.  On  sheet  32  he  is  repre- 
sented as  of  a blue  colour  with  a jewelled  chain  in  front  of 
his  mouth. 

Codex  Fejervdry-Mayer. — The  description  of  the  god  in 
this  MS.  is  similar  to  that  just  given.  In  his  hand  he  supports 


f 


(From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  15.) 


198| 


(From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  16.) 
FORMS  OF  MACUILXOCHITL. 


(From  the  Sahagun  MS.) 


(From  Codex  Magliabecchiarw,  folio  35.) 


FORMS  OF  XOCHIPILLI. 


[109 


STATUES  OF  XOCHIPILLI 


190 


a dish  with  ornaments,  a bangle  for  the  upper  arm,  a feather 
tuft  and  a neck-chain. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  13  : In  this  codex  he  is  seen  seated 
on  a royal  throne.  His  body  and  the  lower  part  of  his  face 
are  coloured  red,  the  upper  facial  region  is  painted  yellow, 
but  contains  a small,  rectangular  field,  half-red  and  half-white, 
while  round  the  mouth  is  executed  a butterfly  design,  after 
the  manner  of  Tonacatecutli  and  the  maize-gods.  His  blue 
ear-plug  has  a jewelled  thong  dependent  from  it,  and  his  nose- 
plug  is  reproduced  in  the  colours  of  the  chalchihuitl  jewel. 
On  his  head  he  wears  the  strap  decorated  by  two  large 
jewelled  disks.  On  the  frontal  side  is  the  stereotyped  bird- 
ornament,  while  from  the  whole,  four  ends  branch  off.  Sur- 
mounting this  representation  is  the  symbol  of  the  night-sky, 
the  dusk-enveloped  eye.  His  nape-ornament  consists  of  red 
and  white  feathers  blended  together.  On  his  breast  is  a 
large  disk  of  gold,  secured  by  strings  of  greenstone  beads. 
His  loin-cloth  is  adorned  with  jewelled  disks,  and  to  the  back- 
bow  is  fastened  a coxcoxtli  bird’s  head,  which  serves  as  a 
“ mirror-tail,”  or  back-mirror.  A portion  of  the  ends  of 
his  loin-cloth  is  coloured  like  the  chalchihuitl  jewel.  In  front 
of  his  mouth  is  a flower  from  which  two  jewelled  thongs 
project. 

Codex  Magliabecchiano. — The  mantles  worn  by  Xochipilli 
are  alluded  to  in  the  MS.  which  accompanies  the  paintings 
in  this  codex  as  “ mantas  de  un  selo  sehor  o de  Cinco  Rosas 
y manta  de  Cinco  Rosas  ” (see  sheets  5 and  6).  There  is  also 
a picture  of  him  on  sheet  47.  The  figure  on  the  red  quemitl 
which  he  wears  is  similar  to  that  worn  on  sheet  20  of  Codex 
Borbonicus  by  the  god  Cinteotl,  and  is,  perhaps,  a butterfly 
motif. 

STATUES 

Stone  effigies  of  Xochipilli  were  set  up  in  the  tlachtli  courts. 
In  the  Museo  Na^onal  at  Mexico  there  is  a stone  statue  of 
the  god  which  represents  him  as  sitting  cross-legged,  as  if 
watching  the  ball-game.  He  wears  the  mask  of  a player  or 
dancer.  By  the  aid  of  such  statues  of  Xochipilli,  which  are 


200  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


found  in  considerable  numbers  all  over  the  eastern  Mexican 
slope,  the  transition  from  the  bird-helmet  to  the  rudimentary 
crest  may  be  studied.1 

MYTH 

The  only  mythical  matter  of  importance  concerning 
Macuilxochitl  or  Xochipilli  is  the  nineteenth  song  in  the 
Sahagun  collection,  which  is  as  follows  * : 

Song  of  the  God  of  Music  and  Games 

Out  of  the  place  of  flowers  I come, 

Priest  of  the  Sunset,  Lord  of  the  Twilight. 

I come  even  now,  my  granddam, 

Thou  of  the  thigh-skin  face-painting, 

Lady  of  the  Sunset, 

I,  priest  of  the  Sunset,  Lord  of  the  Twilight. 

The  god  of  evil  omens, 

The  lord  Tezcatlipoca, 

Shall  answer  to  me,  the  Maize-god. 

In  the  temple  of  the  oclli- god 
The  rabbit  has  come  to  life  again. 

It  runs  about. 

By  my  god  was  it  created. 

I will  bring  down  the  fire-drill,  fire  will  I twirl 
On  the  mountain  of  Mixcoatl  in  Culhuacan. 

Raising  my  voice,  I strike  the  little  mirror  ; 

The  little  mirror  has  grown  weak 
In  the  temple  of  the  octli- god. 

The  white  hair  grows  moist, 

Ripe  has  the  octli  become. 

I will  endeavour  to  elucidate  the  above  strophes,  the 
obscurity  of  which  is  apparent.  The  god  declares  that  he 
comes  from  Tamoanchan,  the  mythical  paradise  of  flowers 
and  vegetation  in  the  west,  and  that  he  is  the  priest  of  the 
sunset  and  lord  of  the  twilight,  both  of  which  are  character- 
istic of  that  region.  He  invokes  his  mother,  or  grandmother, 
Tlazolteotl,  by  names  with  which  her  worshippers  were  familiar. 

1 Seler,  Commentary  on  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  p.  161. 

* But  see  the  song  to  Cinteotl  in  the  portion  dealing  with  that  god,  which 
in  a manner  refers  to  Xochipilli. 


POTTERY  FIGURE  OF  XOCHIPILLI. 
(^ound  at  Teotlan  del  Camino.) 


THE  FESTIVAL  OF  XOCHILHUITL 


201 


He  warns  Tezcatlipoca  that  he  has  the  power  to  avert  his 
evil  omens,  probably  by  means  of  merriment  and  carousing. 
The  rabbit  was  the  Mexican  symbol  of  intoxication  by  octli. 
This  strophe  regarding  it  comes,  as  it  were,  from  the  wor- 
shipper, who  states  that  his  god  Macuilxochitl  or  Xochipilli 
has  created  or  re-created  the  rabbit,  or  spirit  of  the  octli 
beverage.  Sahagun  calls  Xochipilli  a god  of  fire,  and  we 
know  that  he  was  associated  with  the  sacrificial  fire-drill, 
which  was  also  the  symbol  of  sexual  union  and  licence. 
Seler  thinks  that  this  song  shows  “ the  relation  which  exists 
between  the  -pulque  (octli)  gatherings,  the  deity  of  feasts  and 
the  fire-drill.”  1 

FESTIVALS 

Xochilhuitl. — Of  the  feast  of  flowers  over  which  this  god 
presided  Sahagun  says  : “ The  great  folk  made  a feast, 
dancing  and  singing  in  honour  of  this  sign,  decorating  them- 
selves with  their  leathers  and  all  their  grandeur  for  the 
areyto.  At  this  feast  the  king  bestowed  honours  upon 
warriors,  musicians,  and  courtiers.”  He  states  (Lib.  II, 
Appendix  c,  xix) : “ They  made  each  year  in  his  honour 
a feast  called  xochilhuitl.  . . . During  the  four  days  which 
preceded  this  feast  all  those  who  were  to  take  part  in  it, 
men  as  well  as  women,  observed  a rigorous  fast ; and  if 
during  that  period  a man  had  commerce  with  a woman  or 
a woman  with  a man,  they  held  that  the  fast  was  soiled  ; 
that  the  god  held  it  for  a high  offence,  and  that  he  would 
visit  the  offenders  with  maladies  in  their  privy  parts.  . . . 
Before  the  feast  everyone  deprived  himself  of  the  use  of 
chilli  pepper.  They  fed  upon  a kind  of  broth  called  tlalcuilo- 
latolli,  which  is  to  say,  ‘ broth  decorated  with  a flower  in 
the  middle.’  . . . Those  who  fasted  without  the  use  of 
chilli  or  other  savoury  things,  ate  only  once  a day  at  midday.” 
Those  who  did  not  fast  ate  fermented  bread.  The  people 
ornamented  themselves  with  the  symbols  of  the  gods  “ as 
if  they  aspired  to  represent  their  images,”  and  danced  and 
sang  to  the  sound  of  the  drum. 

1 Commentary  on  Aubin  Tonalamatl,  p.  87. 


202  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 

At  midday  they  beheaded  a great  number  of  quails  and 
made  offerings  of  their  blood  before  the  image  of  the  god. 
They  also  pierced  their  ears  in  his  presence.  Others  pierced 
the  tongue  with  the  spines  of  the  maguey,  and  passed  through 
it  a great  number  of  osier  reeds.  Another  ceremony  consisted 
of  making  five  lamalli  (cakes)  of  maize,  which  they  called 
“ fasting  bread.”  These  were  placed  beneath  an  arrow  called 
x ochimitl  (“flower-dart”)  and  were  offered  to  the  idol  as 
from  the  whole  community.  Those  who  wished  to  make  a 
separate  offering  gave  the  god  five  lamalli  upon  a wooden 
platter,  and  chilmolli  soup  in  a vase.  Maize  in  all  shapes 
and  forms  was  also  offered  up.  On  the  same  day  all  the 
great  folk  in  Mexico  who  lived  near  the  frontiers  of  an  enemy 
brought  the  slaves  whom  they  had  captured  to  the  capital 
for  sacrifice. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

This  god  appears  to  have  had  a highly  developed  cult 
among  the  peoples  of  Tehuacan,  Cozcatlan,  and  Teotitlan 
del  Camino.  He  is  primarily  a god  of  flowers  and  food,  that 
is  of  abundance,  and  as  such  he  equates  with  the  god  Cinteotl, 
with  whom  some  of  the  sacred  hymns  even  seem  to  confound 
him.  But  there  are  strong  reasons  why  he  should  not  be 
wholly  identified  with  Cinteotl,  as  Seler  attempts  to  do, 
and  as  the  Mexicans  certainly  did  not  do,  unless  in  later  times. 
(See  Cinteotl.)  It  may  be,  however,  that  he  was  originally 
a god  of  vegetation,  who  later  became  more  especially  a god 
of  flowers,  the  cult  of  which  was  one  particularly  favoured 
by  the  people  of  Mexico.  However  this  may  be,  there  is 
no  doubt  that  the  joyous  and  sportive  side  of  the  god  developed 
at  the  expense  of  all  others,  and  we  find  Sahagun  speaking 
of  him  under  his  two  names  as  “ the  god  of  those  who  served 
for  the  amusement  or  pastime  of  the  great.”  1 He  is,  indeed, 
the  god  of  merriment,  of  dance  and  sport,  of  the  ball-game, 
the  jester  or  buffoon,  and  moreover  presides  over  the  gambling 
game  (of  patoUi,  which  he  is  seen  patronizing  in  the  Maglia- 
becchiano  MS.  According  to  Jacinto  de  la  Serna,  he  is  the 

1 Bk.  i,  c.  xiv. 


XIPE  TOTEC 


203 


god  of  the  great  gamblers  who  frittered  away  their  substance. 
As  the  god  of  sport  he  is  frequently  represented  by  the  ape, 
the  beast  of  mimicry  and  diversion. 

But  he  had  also  a more  worthy  side,  for  to  artists  of  all 
kinds,  painters,  weavers,  and  musicians  in  especial,  he  stood 
as  the  patron  of  all  artistic  effort,  and  those  engaged  in  it 
celebrated  their  worship  of  him  at  the  x ocliilhuitl  festival. 
Several  of  the  mantle  designs  in  the  Codex  Magliabecchiano 
indicate  that  as  a flower-god  he  was  not  forgotten  by  the 
weavers’  caste. 

He  has  associations  with  several  other  gods  besides  Cinteotl, 
especially  with  Ixtlilton  (q.v.),  who  is  spoken  of  as  his  brother, 
and  with  the  Ciuateteo,  or  deceased  warrior  women,  prob- 
ably because  as  a food-god  he  was  supposed  to  come  from  the 
west,  the  place  of  plenty,  where  they  resided,  or,  more  likely, 
because  of  the  hunger  for  earthly  excitement  displayed 
by  these  pleasure-starved  dead  women,  debarred  from  the 
sensuous  delights  of  earth.  His  connexion  with  the  octli- 
gods  as  the  god  of  merriment  and  abundance  of  victuals 
and  festive  good  things  is  plain  ; and  he  is  very  naturally 
the  male  counterpart  of  the  goddess  Xochiquetzal  (q.v.). 
As  hailing  from  a locality  where  planetary  mythology  was 
in  an  advanced  condition,  and  where  the  worship  of  the 
morning  star  was  practised,  he  may  have  had  an  astronomic 
significance,  but  what  this  was  precisely  is  by  no  means  clear. 
We  probably  assess  his  nature  correctly  if  we  allude  to  him 
as  a god  of  pleasure,  feast,  and  frivolity. 

XIPE  TOTEC  = “ OUR  LORD  THE  FLAYED” 

Area  of  Worship  : Plateau  of  Anahuac,  Zapotecs,  Yopis. 

Minor  Names  : 

Tlaltecutli  = “ Lord  of  the  Earth.” 

Anauatl  yteuc  = “ Lord  of  the  Seaboard.” 

Tlatauhqui  Tezcatlipoca  = 14  The  Red  Tezcatlipoca.” 

Itztapaltotee  = “ Our  Lord  of  the  Flat  Stone.” 

Youallauan  = “ Night  Drinker.” 

Symbol  : In  Codex  Borgia  a quail  with  its  head  torn  off  seems  symbolical 
of  this  god. 


204  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


Calendar  Place  : Lord  of  the  fifteenth  day,  quauhtli,  and  of  the 
fourteenth  week,  ce  itzcuintli  ; with  the  Fire-god,  lord  of  the 
twentieth  tonalamatl  division,  ce  tochtli. 

Festival  : Tlacaxipeuliztli. 

Compass  Direction  : West. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  92  : Xipe  is  depicted  in  this 
codex  as  clothed  in  the  flayed  skin  of  the  sacrificed  human 
victim,  which,  after  the  dreadful  rite,  was  drawn  over  the 
priest’s  body  and  worn  for  a number  of  days.  The  slit  eyes 
of  the  mask  he  wears  shows  that  this  also  is  composed  of 
human  skin.  He  wears  a nasal  rod  and  plate  having  the 
general  appearance  of  the  peculiar  peaked  cap  with  which 
he  is  sometimes  represented.  The  ends  of  his  loin-cloth 
are  slit  and  coloured  white  and  red.  Sheet  62.  As  ruler  of 
the  fourteenth  tonalamatl  division  and  god  of  the  fifteenth 
day-count,  Xipe  is  represented  on  this  sheet  as  a red  Tezcat- 
lipoca.  The  limbless  body  is  red,  the  costume  of  the  same 
colour,  but  with  a face-mask  of  yellow,  tinted  to  represent 
dead  human  flesh,  with  the  chapfallen  jaw  of  the  dead, 
narrow  slit  eyes,  as  on  sheet  92,  and  a red  streak  running 
over  the  eye,  the  full  length  of  the  face,  indicative,  perhaps, 
of  the  place  where  the  operation  of  flaying  was  commenced. 
Here  the  nose-cap  is  also  reminiscent  of  Xipe’s  peculiar  peaked 
cap,  its  ends  especially  resembling  those  of  that  headdress. 
Two  red  and  white  bands,  the  colours  of  the  roseate  spoon- 
bill, depend  from  the  ear.  The  hair  is  bound  by  a fillet 
on  which  are  twin  ornaments  of  dull  gold,  and  above  this 
rise  two  rows  of  quetzal  feathers. 

Codex  Vaticanus  A. — Plate  xiv,  Due  de  Loubat’s  repro- 
duction : As  a back-device  he  wears  the  three  banners 

which  are  also  shown  of  him  in  the  picture  in  Duran’s  collec- 
tion. As  god  of  the  fourteenth  tonalamatl  division,  he  holds 
a shield,  banner,  and  a bundle  of  spears,  while  half  of  his 
shield  is  painted  in  dark  and  light  red  rings. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  49 : In  the  Codex  Borgia , Xipe  is 
shown  in  his  character  of  the  patron  god  of  the  warrior’s 
death  by  combat,  or  the  stone  of  sacrifice.  He  wears  a 


(From  Codex  liorgia,  sheet  49.) 


(From  the  Sahagun  MS.,  Bib.  Laurenziaua.) 


FORMS  OF  XIPE, 


(Front.)  (Back.) 

Imago  of  Xipo  found  at  Castillo  do  Teayo,  showing  him  dressed  in  the  skin  of  the  sacrificed  victim. 


XIPE’S  INSIGNIA 


205 


wig  made  from  the  downy  feathers  of  the  eagle,  which,  how- 
ever, does  not  altogether  conceal  his  llame-coloured  hair, 
two  forelocks  of  which  recall  the  hairdressing  of  Tlauizcal- 
pantecutli,  the  god  of  the  planet  Venus.  Underneath  is 
shown  his  small  petticoat  or  apron  of  green  zapote  leaves. 
From  his  mouth  protrudes  a double- jewelled  string,  which, 
perhaps,  signifies  the  fertilizing  rain,  for  as  god  of  human 
sacrifice  he  has  a connexion  with  the  gods  of  fertility.  He 
is  similarly  represented  on  sheet  25,  where  he  is  also  shown 
as  ruler  of  the  fourteenth  tonalamatl  division,  and  the  picture 
indeed  bears  a close  resemblance  to  that  in  Codex  V aticanus  B, 
except  that  his  breast-ornament,  carved  from  a snail-shell,  is 
attached  to  his  variegated  feather  necklace.  In  this  place 
he  also  wears  a feather  wig  with  a red  crest  made  of  the 
plumes  of  the  roseate  spoonbill,  alternating  with  chalchihuitls 
on  leather  and  the  heads  of  rattle-sticks. 

Codex  Borgia  Group  Generally. — In  this  group  generally 
Xipe  stands  as  the  representative  of  the  sign  of  the  day 
quauhlli.  His  insignia  are  the  same  as  those  of  the  red  Tezeat- 
lipoca,  with  striped  face-painting,  but  executed  in  red  and 
yellow  without  the  human  skin,  or  other  special  characteristics, 
and  decorated  only  with  the  warrior’s  headdress  and  Tezcat- 
lipoca’s ring-shaped  breast-ornament.  The  head  and  neck 
are  covered  with  cloth,  on  which  are  stuck  downy  feather- 
balls.  He  holds  in  some  places  a severed  arm,  which  he 
appears  to  be  smelling  or  about  to  devour. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — In  this  codex  Xipe  is  represented  as 
Tezcatlipoca,  and  has  the  face-painting  of  the  red  phase  of 
that  god,  with  the  smoking  mirror  at  his  temple,  the  charac- 
teristic white  ring,  and  the  peculiar  form  of  feather  back- 
ornament,  which  is  to  be  seen  in  some  other  Tezcatlipoca 
pictures  of  this  codex.  But  he  wears  on  his  head-fillet,  instead 
of  jewelled  disks,  an  ornament  of  beaten  gold,  the  crown  of 
roseate  spoonbill  feathers,  the  ends  of  the  bands  shaped  in 
swallow-tailed  fashion,  and  other  insignia  pertaining  to  his 
own  regular  dress.  The  quetzalcomitl  on  his  back  carries  a 
banner  painted  in  light  and  dark  red,  his  especial  colours, 
and  he  also  bears  a shield  painted  in  light  and  dark  red  eon- 


206  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


centric  circles.  In  this  codex  he  holds  a fire-pan,  painted 
with  large  patches  of  rubber  gum,  in  which  is  inserted  the 
rattle-stick  with  Xipe’s  bands  and  loops  coloured  red  and 
white,  or  light  red  and  dark  red  with  bifurcated  ends. 

Vienna  Codex. — Xipe  is  represented  here  in  the  flayed 
human  skin  and  designated  by  the  date  “ Seven  Rain.” 

Codex  Nuttall  (Zouche). — Sheet  83  : In  this  codex  there 
is  a good  representation  of  the  god,  especially  as  regards  his 
headdress.  He  is  depicted  as  the  warrior  secured  to  the 
stone  of  combat,  whose  eye  sheds  tears  at  the  thought  of 
approaching  death,  and  he  bears  in  his  hands  the  batons 
w'ith  which  the  military  victims  defended  themselves  against 
their  adversaries  (see  Festival). 

Sahagun  MS. — This  describes  him  as  having  a brown  face 
covered  with  the  feathers  of  the  quail,  and  with  open  lips 
(chapfallen  jaw  ?).  His  crown  has  parted  ends,  and  he  wears 
a wig  of  curled  feathers.  He  has  golden  ear-plugs.  Round 
the  hips  he  has  a woman’s  short  skirt  of  zapole  leaves,  and 
shells  decorate  his  feet.  His  shield  is  red,  with  concentric 
circles,  and  he  carries  a rattle-staff. 

MASKS,  VASES,  ETC. 

The  well-known  mask  of  Xipe  in  the  British  Museum 
represents  the  mask  of  the  sacrificed  victim.  On  the  back 
or  inside,  the  carving  of  the  god  shows  him  wearing  his  full 
insignia,  with  the  peculiar  headdress  and  rattle-staff.  Another 
mask  of  Xipe  in  the  Bauer  collection  is  of  a most  individual 
character.  It  was  found  near  Tezcuco,  and  bears  both  wind 
and  serpent  symbols.  On  a stone  at  Cuernavaca  is  incised 
a good  representation  of  the  shield,  darts,  and  flag  of  Xipe, 
with  date  ce  ocelotl  (“  one  ocelot  ”).  On  a cup  in  the  Aldana 
collection  Xipe  is  seen  wearing  the  flayed  skin,  with  a neck- 
lace, evidently  of  intestines.  His  hair  is  dressed  in  a manner 
resembling  that  affected  by  the  warrior  caste,  and  he  carries 
the  rattle-staff. 

STATUES 

Representations  of  Xipe  in  statuary  are  considerably 
numerous.  Several  found  in  the  Valley  of  Mexico  are  housed 


STATUES  OF  XIPE 


207 


in  the  Uhde  collection,  Berlin.  Two  of  these  represent  the 
god  as  wearing  the  victim’s  flayed  skin  and  one  of  them  is 
pitted  with  marks,  evidently  indicative  of  blood-spots.  The 
crown  with  feathers  of  the  roseate  spoonbill  is  well  exempli- 
fied in  one  of  these,  but  in  the  other  a mitre-like  headdress 
superimposed  upon  a circular  crown,  from  which  depend 
large  ribbons  or  paper  ornaments,  is  noticeable.  In  another 
of  these  figures  the  headdress  is  a sort  of  barret-cap  with 
knobs  or  studs.  Still  another  figure  of  the  same  class  shows 
the  god  with  a very  large  stepped  nose-ornament.  All  carry 
a rattle-staff  and  three  bear  a shield.  A most  striking  statue 
of  Xipe  was  discovered  at  the  Castillo  de  Teayo  site,  at  Vera 
Cruz.  The  head,  which  is  round  and  bullet-shaped,  bears 
an  extraordinary  resemblance  to  that  of  the  well-known 
Egyptian  figure  of  the  Sheik-el-Beled  in  the  Boulaq  Museum. 
In  this  statue  the  god  wears  the  skin  of  the  victim,  and  the 
manner  in  which  it  was  tied  on  to  the  priest  is  well  illustrated 
by  the  knotting  at  the  back.  The  faces,  of  course,  are  masks 
of  the  sacrificed  victim. 

ELEMENTS  OF  XIPE'S  INSIGNIA 

Although  Xipe  is  so  frequently  portrayed  as  possessing  the 
outward  characteristics  of  a red  Tezcatlipoca,  few  of  the 
Mexican  deities  possess  insignia  so  individual,  or  so  rich 
in  manifold  elements.  The  Xipe  dress  was  a favourite  one 
with  Mexican  kings  and  military  chieftains,  and,  in  the  Codex 
Vaticanus  A,  King  Motecuhzoma  II  is  represented  as  wearing 
the  costume  on  the  occasion  of  his  victory  over  Toluca.  Tezo- 
zomoc  also  states  that  Axayacatl  wore  this  dress,1  and  on 
the  eve  of  a fierce  engagement  Tlacauepan,  brother  of  Mote- 
cuhzoma, donned  it  at  the  latter’s  special  request.  The 
elements  of  Xipe’s  costume  are  as  follows  2 : 

(1)  The  painted  crown  of  feathers  of  the  roseate  spoonbill, 
with  bifurcated  ends. 

(2)  The  gilded  timbrel. 

1 Cronica  Mexicana.  See  picture  of  Axayacatl  in  Boban’s  catalogue  of 
the  Goupil  collection,  Paris,  1891,  pp.  14,  15. 

2 The  best  authority  on  Xipe’s  costume  is  Sahagun  (Mexican  MS  ). 


208  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


(3)  The  jacket  of  spoonbill  feathers. 

(4)  The  petticoat  or  apron  of  zapotc  leaves,  overlapping 
each  other  like  tiles. 

(5)  The  jaguar  or  ocelot-skin  scabbard. 

(6)  The  round  shield  covered  with  red  spoonbill  feathers, 
showing  concentric  circles  of  darker  tints,  sometimes  notice- 
ably bisected,  one-half  of  which  is  again  subdivided  obliquely 
into  a smaller  upper  portion  containing  a chalchihuitl  on  a 
blue  field,  and  a larger  lower  portion,  covered  with  jaguar 
or  ocelot-skin. 

Xipe’s  dress  has  three  forms  : 

(1)  That  of  the  red  god,  of  the  colour  of  the  roseate  spoon- 
bill. 

(2)  That  of  the  blue  god,  of  the  colour  of  the  blue  cotinga. 

(3)  As  a jaguar  or  ocelot. 

mYtiis 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A says  of  Xipe  : 
“ Amongst  those  who  began  to  follow  the  example  of  Quet- 
zalcoatl  and  his  austerities  by  their  own  acts  of  penance, 
Totec  is  very  famous,  who,  on  account  of  his  having  been  a 
great  sinner,  first  stood  in  the  house  of  sorrow  called  Tlaxi- 
puchicalco,  where,  having  completed  his  penance,  he  ascended 
the  mountain  Catcitepulz  (‘the  mountain  which  speaks’), 
which  mountain  was  covered  with  thorns.  There  continuing 
his  penance,  he  cried  from  thence  very  strongly,  reproving 
his  people  of  Tulan,  calling  to  them  to  come  and  do  penance 
with  him  for  the  enormous  guilt  which  they  had  incurred  in 
forgetting  the  services  and  sacrifices  of  their  gods  and  having 
abandoned  themselves  so  much  to  pleasure.  They  say  that 
Totec  was  accustomed  to  go  about  clothed  in  a human  skin 
and  so  it  has  been  the  custom  till  those  times.  In  the  festivals, 
likewise,  which  they  celebrated  to  Totec,  men  clothed  them- 
selves in  the  skins  of  those  whom  they  had  slain  in  war  and 
in  this  manner  danced  and  celebrated  the  festival  of  the  sign 
dedicated  to  him  (for  from  him,  they  say,  wars  originated), 
and  accordingly  they  paint  him  with  these  insignia,  viz.  a 


208] 


XIPE  AS  THE  PIED  PIPER 


209 


lance,  banner,  and  shield.  They  hold  him  in  the  utmost 
veneration,  for  they  say  that  he  was  the  first  who  opened  to 
them  the  way  to  heaven  ; for  they  were  under  this  error 
amongst  others  ; they  supposed  that  only  those  who  died  in 
war  went  to  heaven,  as  we  have  already  said.  Whilst  Totec 
still  continued  doing  penance,  preaching  and  crying  from  the 
top  of  the  mountain  which  has  been  named,  they  pretend 
that  he  dreamed  this  night  that  he  beheld  a horrible  figure 
with  its  bowels  protruding,  which  was  the  cause  of  the  great 
abomination  of  his  people.  On  this,  praying  to  his  god  to 
reveal  to  him  what  the  figure  signified,  he  answered  that  it 
was  the  sin  of  his  people,  and  that  he  should  issue  an  order  to 
the  people,  and  cause  them  all  to  be  assembled,  charging  them 
to  bring  thick  ropes,  and  to  bind  that  miserable  spectre,  as 
it  was  the  cause  of  all  their  sins,  and  that,  dragging  it  away, 
they  should  remove  it  from  the  people,  who,  giving  faith  to 
the  words  of  Totec,  were  by  him  conducted  to  a certain  wild 
place,  where  they  found  the  figure  of  death,  which,  having 
bound,  they  dragged  it  to  a distance,  and  drawing  it  back- 
wards, they  fell  all  into  a cavity  between  the  two  mountains, 
which  closed  together,  and  there  they  have  remained  buried 
ever  since  ; none  of  them  having  effected  their  escape,  with 
the  exception  of  the  innocent  children  who  remained  in 
Tulan.” 

A few  lines  farther  on  the  interpreter  says  : “ The  two 
masters  of  penance  were  Quetzalcoatle  and  Totec,  who  was 
called  by  another  name,  Chipe ; who,  having  taken  the 
children  and  the  innocent  people  who  remained  in  Tulan, 
proceeded  with  them,  peopling  the  world,  and  collecting  along 
with  them  other  people  whom  they  chanced  to  find.  They 
further  add  that,  journeying  in  this  manner  with  these  people, 
they  arrived  at  a certain  mountain,  which  not  being  able  to 
pass,  they  feign  that  they  bored  a subterranean  way  through 
it  and  so  passed.  Others  say  that  they  remained  shut  up 
and  that  they  were  transformed  into  stones,  and  other  such 
fables.” 

The  first  part  of  this  myth  is,  of  course,  merely  aetiological 
of  the  practice  of  making  vows  to  Xipe  to  capture  and  im- 
14 


210  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


molate  an  enemy  in  his  honour,  as,  we  shall  see  in  the  para- 
graph dealing  with  his  festivals,  was  done  on  that  occasion. 
But  I would  point  out  that  it  possesses  some  importance  as 
providing  further  evidence  regarding  the  existence  of  the 
ascetic  life  in  Mexico,  most  of  the  myths  dealing  with  which, 
like  that  under  discussion,  are  connected  with  the  Toltecs, 
the  people  of  Quetzalcoatl.  Xipe,  who  plays  the  part  of  the 
Toltec  Jeremiah,  is  here  the  subject  of  a tale  which  is  also 
recounted  of  Tezcatlipoca,  with  whom  he  is  frequently  con- 
founded or  identified,  perhaps  because  both  were  great  gods 
of  the  sacrificial  stone,  or  for  the  reason  that  practically  all 
Mexican  cults  tended  to  gravitate  towards  Tezcatlipoca  in 
late  times. 

That  portion  of  the  story  which  details  the  burial  en  masse 
of  the  Toltecs  is,  of  course,  the  widespread  tale  of  the  dis- 
appearance of  the  old  hero-race  underground — the  fate  which 
overtook  Charlemagne  and  his  peers,  King  Arthur  and  “ the 
auld  Piets  ” at  Arthur’s  Seat,  near  Edinburgh,  Barbarossa 
and  his  men,  and  many  another  group  of  paladins.  The 
whole  may  allude,  in  the  ultimate,  to  mound-burial.  It  is 
strange  too — or  quite  natural,  as  we  believe  in,  or  doubt,  the 
penetration  of  America  by  alien  influences — to  find  in  Mexico 
an  incomplete  variant  of  the  legend  of  the  Pied  Piper  of 
Hamclin.  I should  not  be  surprised  to  find  that  Xipe  piped 
the  Toltec  children  into  the  Underworld,  for  Tezcatlipoca, 
with  whom  he  was  identified,  or  at  least  the  captive  who 
represented  that  god  at  the  Toxcatl  festival,  and  who  had  a 
year  of  merriment  in  which  to  prepare  himself  for  his  fate, 
went  through  the  city  at  intervals,  playing  upon  a flute.  This 
almost  universal  myth  may  allude  to  the  ancient  belief  that 
the  souls  of  the  dead  travelled  with  the  wind,  and  were  the 
cause  of  its  sighing  and  whistling.1  We  know,  too,  that  the 
whistling  of  the  night  wind  through  the  mountains  was 
regarded  by  the  Mexicans  as  of  evil  omen,  and  that  Yoalli 
Eecatl  (The  Wind  of  Night)  was  one  of  the  names  of  Tezcat- 
lipoca.* 

1 Baring-Gould,  Curious  Myths  of  the  Middle  Ages,  pp.  417  ff. 

2 Saliagun,  bk.  v,  c.  xiii. 


THE  SONG  OF  XI  PE 


211 


The  following  song  from  the  Sahagun  MS.  is  in  celebration 
of  Xipe  : 

Wherefore  dost  thou  disguise  thyself,  O Night-drinker  ? 

Put  on  thy  golden  garment. 

0 my  god,  thy  rich  sacrificial  water  descended  ; 

The  lofty  cypress  tree  has  become  a quetzal ; 

That  which  was  a serpent  has  become  a quetzal. 

The  fire-serpent,  the  famine,  has  left  me. 

It  may  be  that  I shall  go  thence  to  perish, 

I,  the  young  maize-plant. 

My  heart  is  like  a chalchikuitl ; 

But  I shall  yet  see  gold  in  that  place. 

1 shall  be  satisfied  when  I can  say 
The  warrior  chief  is  born. 

Let  the  maize  be  ready  in  abundance,  O my  god. 

I look  towards  thy  mountain,  I,  who  worship  thee. 

I will  be  satisfied 
When  the  maize  ripens, 

When  the  warrior  chief  is  born. 


I believe  the  god  to  have  been  called  “ Night-drinker  ” 
from  the  circumstance  that,  in  the  belief  of  certain  barbarous 
peoples,  vegetation  is  more  greatly  assisted  in  its  growth  by 
night  than  by  day,  that  it  “ drinks,”  or  is  saturated  by,  the 
mists  and  vapours  of  the  night  season,  which  are  believed  to 
emanate  from  the  moon.1  Indeed,  dew  is  believed  to  be 
caused  by  the  moon,2  which  is  regarded  as  the  great  source 
of  all  moisture,  as  the  sun  is  the  great  source  of  all  heat.5 

Xipe  is  here  entreated  by  the  young  maize-plant  to  don  his 
golden  garment,  the  rain,  as,  indeed,  one  translation  of  this 
song  states  it  to  be,  taking  a reasonable  liberty  with  the 
original.  When  the  rain  comes  the  cypress  glitters  like  a 
quetzal-feather,  a Mexican  euphuism  for  a glittering  gem,  or 
anything  very  precious.  The  xiuhcoatl,  or  fire-serpent,  is 
the  terrible  weapon  of  Uitzilopochtli,  with  which  he  slew  his 
rebellious  brothers  and  sister,  the  enemies  of  his  mother  Coat- 

1 Werenfels,  Dissertation  upon  Superstition,  p.  6 (London,  1748).  Bancroft, 
Native  Races  of  the  Pacific  States,  vol.  ii,  pp.  719  ff. 

2 Roscher,  Uber  Selene  und  verwandles  (Leipzig,  1890),  pp.  49  ff. 

3 Pliny,  Nat.  Hist.,  vol.  ii,  p.  223  ; Payne,  Hist.  New  World,  vol.  i,  p.  495. 


212  DEITIES  OF  TIIE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


licue,  as  Indra  slew  those  of  his  mother,  both  of  these  events 
occurring  immediately  after  the  birth  of  the  gods  thus  com- 
pared. (in  the  case  of  Indra  the  weapon  was  a thunderbolt.) 
The  fire-serpent  in  this  place  evidently  symbolizes  the  scorch- 
ing, torrid  heat  which  brings  about  famine.  If  the  rain 
continues  not,  the  maize-plant,  the  young  heart  of  which  is 
green  as  jadeite,  and  from  which  the  golden  maize  will  emerge 
later,  may  perish.  Finally  the  worshipper  (?)  states  that  he 
will  remain  unsatisfied  until  the  plumed  and  full-grown  plant, 
symbolic  of  the  warrior  and  all  that  he  fights  for,  has  come  to 
fruition. 

My  reading  of  this  song  differs  considerably  from  those  of 
other  authorities,  but  I may,  perhaps,  be  pardoned  if  I say 
that  I prefer  my  own  elucidation  as  at  least  more  circumstan- 
tial and  more  in  line  with  the  facts  of  Mexican  belief. 

FESTIVAL 

Tlacaxipeuliztli. — The  best  description  of  this  festival  is 
that  of  Sahagun  (bk.  ii,  c.  xxi)  who  tells  us  that  on  the  last 
day  of  the  month  of  that  name  the  Mexicans  celebrated  a 
solemn  festival  to  Xipe  and  Uitzilopochtli.  On  the  afternoon 
of  the  day  prior  to  that  on  which  the  feast  was  to  take  place 
they  held  a solemn  areyto,  or  dance,  and  they  watched  all  the 
night  in  the  temple  called  calpulco  1 with  those  who  were  to 
be  sacrificed  on  the  morrow.  They  shaved  the  hair  from  the 
tops  of  their  heads,  at  the  same  time  drawing  blood  from  their 
own  ears  to  offer  to  the  gods.  When  daybreak  had  come, 
they  conducted  the  captives  to  the  temple  of  Uitzilopochtli, 
where  they  were  sacrificed  and  flayed,  from  which  circum- 
stance the  feast  took  its  name.  Many  of  the  victims  were 
called  Xipeme  or  Tototectin  (plurals  of  the  god’s  name).  The 
masters  of  the  captives,  or  those  who  had  captured  them  in 
war,  formally  handed  them  over  to  the  priests  at  the  foot  of 
the  teocalli,  and  these  took  them  by  the  hair  of  the  head  to 
make  them  mount  the  steps  more  quickly.  If  they  refused 
to  walk  to  the  stone  of  sacrifice  they  were  dragged  thence. 
When  their  hearts  had  been  withdrawn  they  were  offered 

1 Or  calpulli,  a muster-place  at  several  festivals. 


XIPE’S  FESTIVAL 


213 


up  to  the  gods,  and  the  body  cast  down  the  steps  of  the 
teocalli,  where  other  priests  received  it  for  flaying.  The  hearts 
of  the  unfortunates  thus  slaughtered  were  thrown  into  a tub 
of  wood  and  took  the  name  of  quanochtli,  or”  nopal  wood,” 
of  which  the  tubs  were  made. 

The  flaying  process  was  undertaken  by  a caste  of  elderly 
and  probably  inferior  priests,  the  quaquacuilton.1  Before 
the  bodies  of  the  sacrificed  were  so  treated  they  were  carried 
to  the  temple,  where  the  “ master  ” of  the  captive  had  made 
his  vow  to  capture  and  consecrate  a victim  to  the  god.  The 
body  was  broken  up  at  this  place,  and  a leg  was  dispatched 
to  court  for  the  table  of  the  king,  the  remainder  being 
divided  among  the  great,  or  the  master’s  parents.  The 
dreadful  repast  was  usually  partaken  of  in  the  house  of  him 
who  had  taken  the  captive  prisoner  in  war.  They  cooked 
the  flesh  with  maize  and  gave  a little  to  each  in  a small  por- 
ringer. The  dish  was  called  tlacatlaolli , or  “ man  and  maize.” 
After  having  eaten,  the  feasters  became  intoxicated  on  octli. 
On  the  following  day,  having  watched  all  the  night,  they 
went  to  amuse  themselves  by  examining  the  other  captives, 
and  in  watching  them  being  baited  on  the  stone  of  combat. 
These  latter  were  known  as  uauantin,  “ the  pierced,”  with 
reference  to  the  wounds  they  received.8 

Before  the  sacrificial  rites  took  place  the  captors  of  the 
victims  gathered  together,  and  when  the  victims  had  been 
dispatched  the  captors,  or  certain  priests  (it  is  not  clear 
which),  drew  on  the  skins  of  the  flayed  victims,  and 
took  up  positions  on  hillocks  of  hay  or  heaps  of  chalk  or 
rubbish.  Others  approached  them,  and  defied  them  to 
combat  by  words  and  pinches.  A skirmish  ensued,  and  those 
who  were  captured  did  not  escape  scot-free,  being  rather 
roughly  handled.  This  mock  combat  over,  the  real  business 
of  the  day  began  in  terrible  earnest.  The  wretched  captive 

1 “ They  who  seize  the  head,”  alluding  to  the  custom  of  taking  the  victims  by 

the  hair. 

1 Sahagun  states  that  the  “ hair  ” of  the  uauantin  was  kept  as  a trophy. 
This  seems  to  me  analogous  to  the  North  American  Indian  custom  of  scalping, 
which  is  sometimes  spoken  of  as  “losing  one’s  hair,”  a phrase  which,  through 
its  use  among  American  border  fighters,  has  passed  into  slang. 


214  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


was  secured  by  one  ankle  to  the  temalacatl,  or  stone  of  combat, 
and  wooden  batons  on  which  eagle-down  had  been  stuck, 
in  imitation  of  a maquahuitl , or  obsidian-edged  sword, 
were  placed  in  his  hands.  Four  warriors  now  came  against 
the  victim,  two  of  the  ocelotl  corps  of  knights  and  two  of  the 
quauhtli  or  Eagle  Corps,  and  having  raised  their  shields  and 
weapons  to  the  sun,  one  of  them  attacked  the  captive  tied 
to  the  stone.  If  he  defended  himself  with  address,  two 
or  even  three  of  his  opponents  attacked  him,  and  if  he 
still  made  good  his  resistance,  all  four  fell  upon  him,  “ inter- 
mingling their  blows  with  dances  and  numerous  poses.” 

Prior  to  the  combat  a solemn  procession  was  formed  to  the 
temalacatl.  A body  of  priests,  dressed  in  the  insignia  of  one 
or  other  of  the  gods  in  whose  honour  the  festival  was  held, 
issued  from  the  yopico  (“in  Yopi  land”),  the  temple  of 
Xipe,  followed  by  the  tecutlis,  or  knights,  already  alluded  to, 
who  flourished  their  weapons  and  made  a martial  show. 
Arrived  at  the  temalacatl,  they  marched  round  it,  and  seated 
themselves  on  carven  stools  called  quecholicpalli  (“  perch 
of  the  strong  bird  ”).  The  priest  who  took  charge  of  the 
proceedings  was  called  Youallauan  (Night-drinker),  one  of 
the  names  of  the  god,  and  when  all  were  seated,  an  orchestra 
of  trumpets,  flutes,  and  conch-shells  struck  up,  mingled  with 
whistling  and  singing.  The  performers  wore  on  their  shoulders 
streamers  of  white  feathers  mounted  on  long  staves,  which, 
as  we  have  seen,  was  part  of  the  Xipe  dress,  and  sat  between 
the  priests  and  the  stone  of  combat. 

When  the  frightful  overture  had  concluded,  a captive  was 
placed  on  the  stone  by  the  person  who  devoted  him  to 
sacrifice,  and  a beaker  of  octli  was  given  him  to  hearten  him 
to  fight  well.  This  he  presented  to  the  four  points  of  the 
compass,  and  then  sucked  its  contents  through  a reed.  A 
priest  then  took  up  his  stand  in  front  of  the  doomed  man, 
and  holding  a living  quail  before  him  as  before  a god,  tore 
off  its  head.  Another  priest  clad  in  a bear-skin  secured  the 
captive  to  the  stone  and  handed  him  his  weapons,  and  then 
his  captor  danced  before  him,  as  before  a divinity.  The 
combat  then  took  place,  and  in  the  unusual  event  of  a victim 


THE  DANCE  OF  XIPE 


215 


overcoming  the  four  well-appointed  warriors  who  opposed 
him,  a fifth,  who  must  be  a left-handed  man,  rushed  in,  raised 
the  exhausted  victor  in  his  arms  and  threw  him  to  the  ground, 
where  he  was  dispatched  by  the  Youallauan. 

The  victim’s  heart  was  then  thrown  into  the  wooden 
tub  before  alluded  to,  after  it  had  been  held  up  to  the  sun. 
Another  priest  now  took  a hollow  reed  and  introduced  it 
into  the  opening  from  which  the  heart  had  been  removed. 
Having  drawn  off  a sufficient  quantity  of  blood,  he  went  to 
offer  it  up  to  the  sun.  The  master  of  the  captive  who  had 
been  slain  then  filled  a bowl  with  the  blood  of  his  victim, 
which  vessel  was  gaily  decorated  with  feathers  and  which 
contained  a tube,  similarly  ornamented.  With  this  he  went 
the  round  of  the  temples,  smearing  the  blood  upon  the  lips 
of  the  idols  with  the  feathered  tube.  He  next  divested  him- 
self of  the  gay  feather  cloak  he  wore  for  the  occasion  and 
carried  the  flayed  corpse  of  his  captive,  or  what  remained  of  it, 
to  his  house,  after  royal  and  other  requirements  had  been 
met.  As  has  been  said,  he  feasted  his  family  and  friends  on 
the  body,  but  did  not  himself  partake  of  it,  as  he  was  regarded 
as  the  ritual  father  of  the  deceased.  “ The  skin  of  a victim 
also  belonged  to  his  captor,  and  this  he  gave  to  those  who 
dressed  themselves  in  skins  (in  consequence  of  a vow),  and 
so  attired,  paraded  the  streets  of  the  town.  Others  wore 
the  heads  of  wolves.”  1 

“ When  the  captive  had  been  slain,  all  who  were  present, 
priests,  warriors  and  others,  began  to  dance  the  areyto  round 
the  temalacatl,  the  captors  of  the  victims  carrying  the  heads 
of  the  slain.  This  areyto,  or  dance,  was  called  motzontecomai- 
totia  (dance  with  decapitated  heads).  The  cuitlachueue  (old 
jackal 2),  godfather  of  the  captives,  took  in  his  hands  the 
cords  which  had  held  them  to  the  temalacatl  and  raised  them 
to  the  four  cardinal  points  in  sign  of  adoration.  After  that 
‘ he  groaned,  he  wept  for  the  dead.’ 

“ The  foreigners  with  whom  Motecuhzoma  was  at  war 

1 Tezcatlipoca  took  the  form  of  a coyote  and  lay  in  wait  for  travellers. 
Sahagun,  bk.  v,  c.  xiii. 

* Or  coyote. 


216  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


came  to  assist  secretly  at  the  spectacle.  These  were  the  men 
of  Uexotzinco,  Tlaxcallan  and  Nonoualco,  Cempoallan, 
and  many  other  places.  The  Mexicans  pretended  not  to 
see  them,  and  they  were  thus  able  to  behold  the  fate  reserved 
for  captives  in  Mexico.  When  all  was  over,  everyone  ate  a 
tortilla  called  uilocpalli,  or  pigeon-seat,  a kind  of  little  pate 
made  with  uncooked  maize.  Next  day  everyone  assisted  at 
an  areyto  of  great  solemnity,  which  was  commenced  in  the 
royal  palace.  All  were  dressed  in  their  best  and  carried 
tamallis  and  tortillas  of  roasted  maize,  called  momochtli, 
which  they  wore  instead  of  collars  and  garlands.  They 
carried  also  red  feathers  and  stalks  of  maize.  The  areyto 
ceased  at  midday,  and  the  nobles  ranged  themselves  three 
and  three  in  the  royal  palaces.  The  king  appeared,  having 
upon  his  right  the  King  of  Tezcuco  and  on  his  left  the  Lord 
of  Tacuba.  A solemn  dance  then  took  place,  which  lasted 
until  the  sun  went  down,  after  which  they  commenced  another 
dance,  in  which  everyone  took  hands  and  danced  in  a ser- 
pentine figure.  The  old  soldiers  and  recruits  came  to  this 
dance,  bringing  with  them  female  partners  and  even  public 
women.  This  lasted  also  on  the  place  where  the  captives 
had  been  slain  till  nearly  midnight,  and  they  continued  to 
celebrate  these  feasts  for  nearly  twenty  days,  until  they 
had  arrived  at  the  kalends  of  the  month  which  they  called 
tozoztontli .” 

Twenty  days  after  the  festival  those  who  wore  the  skins  of 
the  slain  removed  them,  but  it  would  seem,  from  what  Saha- 
gun  says,  that  certain  devotees  wore  these  from  the  festival 
of  ilacaxipeuliztli  at  the  end  of  that  month  to  the  beginning 
of  the  following  ilacaxipeuliztli.  Persons  afflicted  with  skin 
diseases  or  weak  sight  frequently  made  a vow  to  be  present 
at  this  ceremony.  The  devotees  then  performed  ceremonial 
ablutions  in  a bath  in  the  temple,  in  which  water  was  mixed 
with  maize  flour,  or,  more  strictly  speaking,  they  were  bathed 
by  others.  They  then  shampooed  their  heads  and  did  pen- 
ance for  the  death  of  the  captive.  After  this  the  captor 
erected  a tripod  in  the  court  of  his  house,  on  the  top  of  which 
was  a petlatl,  or  mat  rolled  into  a ball,  on  which  he  placed 


THE  COLUMN  OF  XIPE 


217 


all  the  paper  ornaments  which  the  captive  had  worn  at  his 
sacrifice.  “ He  then  chose  a courageous  young  man  wrho 
wore  those  papers,  and  who  took  a shield  in  one  hand  and 
a cudgel  in  the  other,  and  went  through  the  streets  as  if 
looking  for  an  evil-doer.  Everyone  was  afraid,  and  cried, 
‘ Behold  the  letzompac  (noble  one)  comes ! ’ If  he  caught 
anyone  he  took  his  mantle,  and  all  the  spoil  he  took  he  brought 
back  to  the  captor.  The  captor  then  placed  in  the  middle 
of  the  court  of  his  house  a joist  in  the  form  of  a column, 
which  indicated  that  he  had  made  captives  in  war,  and  which 
was  the  blazon  of  his  honour.  Then  he  took  the  thigh-bone 
of  the  captive,  ornamented  it  with  the  papers,  and  attached 
it  to  the  top  of  the  column  in  his  courtyard.  He  then  invited 
his  parents,  friends,  and  the  men  of  his  quarter,  in  presence 
of  whom  he  hung  the  bone  up,  and  then  he  gave  them  to  eat 
and  drink.  F amily  songs  were  sung.  All  these  things  were 
done  in  the  twenty  days  before  they  arrived  at  the  uei  tozoztli. 

The  goldsmiths,  of  whose  caste  Xipe  was  the  patron,  prob- 
ably because  the  yellow  human  skin  in  which  he  was  repre- 
sented as  being  clad  typified  an  overlay  of  gold-foil,  held  a 
festival  during  tlacaxipeuliztli  in  the  yopico  temple  sacred 
to  the  god,  sacrificing  and  burning  victims  to  him,  and  cover- 
ing a human  representative  of  him  with  ornaments  and 
precious  stones,  a crown  of  feathers,  golden  necklaces  and 
earrings,  and  scarlet  sandals.  They  then  placed  him  upon 
a throne  and  offered  him  the  first  fruits  and  flowers  of  the 
season,  together  with  bunches  of  maize-seed. 

The  mode  of  sacrifice  by  shooting  to  death  with  darts  or 
arrow's  wras  employed  in  connexion  with  Xipe  as  well  as 
in  the  case  of  Tlazolteotl  (q.v.).  A captive  was  secured  to 
a scaffold  and  shot  with  darts,  so  that  his  blood  might  fall 
upon  the  ground.  This  usage  may  be  regarded  as  of  the 
nature  of  sympathetic  magic  to  secure  rainfall. 

TEMPLES 

At  least  three  buildings  wrere  erected  to  the  honour  of  Xipe 
at  Mexico.1  The  first  of  these,  known  as  yopico  (“  in  Yopi 
1 Sahagun,  bk.  ii.  Appendix. 


218  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


land  ”),  has  already  been  alluded  to,  and  was  probably 
the  principal  place  connected  with  his  worship.  It  was 
at  this  temple  that  the  ceremonies  of  the  tlacaxipeuliztli 
festival  took  place.  The  second,  called  yopico  calmecac, 
appears  to  have  been  situated  in  the  quarter  of  Tlatelolco, 
and,  as  its  name  implies,  was  evidently  a monastery  or  place 
of  instruction.  At  another  edifice,  the  yopoci  tzompantli, 
the  heads  of  the  victims  slain  at  the  festival  of  the  god  were 
exhibited.  In  front  of  the  first  of  these  stood  the  temalacatl , 
the  stone  to  which  the  captives  were  secured  when  they 
fought  with  the  Mexican  warriors  before  they  were  finally 
sacrificed. 


PRIESTHOOD 

The  Xipe  yopico  teohua,  or  priesthood  dedicated  to  the 
service  of  Xipe,  is  enumerated  among  the  various  classes 
of  priests  charged  with  the  service  of  the  gods,1  and  held 
in  their  keeping  Xipe’s  insignia  and  the  accessories  for  his 
festival.  They  resided  in  the  yopico  calmecac  or  monastery. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Xipe  is  pre-eminently  a god  of  seed-time  and  planting.* 
He  is  the  Tlaltecutli,  or  “ Lord  of  the  Earth,”  and  in  a second- 
ary sense,  the  god  of  the  warrior’s  death  on  the  stone  of  combat, 
because  of  the  association  between  the  food-supply  and  mili- 
tary service  for  the  purpose  of  gaining  captives.  There 
can  be  no  question  that  Xipe  was  of  Zapotec  origin  ; indeed, 
that  is  manifest  from  the  name  of  his  temple,  Yopico,  which 
means  the  “ land  of  the  Yopi  ” or  Tlappeneca,  a people 
of  Zapotec  affinities,  and  his  cap  was  known  as  yopitzontli, 
“ the  Yopi  head.”  One  of  his  names  was  Anauatl  itecu,  or 
“ Lord  of  the  Coastland,”  and  we  know  from  Herrera  5 that 
he  was  especially  worshipped  in  the  district  of  Teotitlan, 

1 Sahagun,  bk.  ii,  Appendix. 

2 Seler,  Commentary  on  Codex  V aticanus  B,  p.  175. 

3 Decade  iii,  lib.  iii,  c.  xv. 


XI PE  AS  WARRIOR 


219 


which  commands  the  road  to  Tabasco.  Both  Sahagun 
and  the  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A uphold  his  alien 

origin. 

Just  as  the  Egyptian  priests  of  Ammon  at  Thebes  once 
a year  killed  a ram,  flayed  it,  and  clothed  the  image  of  their 
god  in  the  skin,  just  as  the  Celtic  priest  wore  the  skin  of  a bull 
at  certain  festivals,  so  the  Mexicans  slew  and  flayed  a man, 
in  whose  skin  they  clothed  their  priests  and  those  who  desired 
to  be  closely  associated  with  the  god.  The  idea  underlying 
this  practice  would  appear  to  be  the  renewal  of  the  life  of 
the  deity.  It  seems  to  have  some  bearing  on  the  phenomena 
of  the  system  known  as  “ totemism,”  regarding  the  real 
significance  of  which  we  know  so  little,  despite  the  seeming 
erudition  which  has  of  late  years  been  lavished  upon  its 
consideration,  for,  as  we  have  seen,  the  captor  of  the  slain 
victim  was  not  permitted  to  eat  of  his  flesh,  although 
that  may  only  have  been  taboo  to  him  because  he  stood  to 
the  doomed  man  in  the  relation  of  a sponsor.  Xipe  represents 
the  earth  “ flayed,”  that  is  bare,  and  ready  for  sowing.  The 
flaying  of  the  captive  and  the  dressing  of  the  god’s  repre- 
sentative in  the  skin  may  have  been  of  the  nature  of  sym- 
pathetic magic,  as  a suggestion  to  the  earth  to  rehabilitate 
itself  in  its  covering  of  yellow  maize. 

It  is  precisely  the  agricultural  god  whom  in  Mexico  we 
must  expect  to  find  clothed  in  all  the  attributes  of  the  warrior, 
and  truly  Xipe  does  not  disappoint  us  in  this  respect.  He 
is  armed  cap-a-pie,  and  his  dress  was  the  favourite  harness 
of  Mexican  royalty  when  it  went  forth  to  battle,  as  witness 
the  Spartan  suggestion  of  Motecuhzoma  to  his  brother  on 
the  eve  of  a great  combat.1  The  Codex  Vaticanus  A calls 
him  “ il  guerreggiatore  attristato .”  Thus  at  his  feast  the 

sacrifice  takes  the  form  of  a combat.  Indeed,  he  represents 
the  warrior  caste,  by  the  efforts  of  whom  the  altars  of  Mexico 
were  supplied  with  human  victims,  and  the  maize-crop 
was  consequently  secured. 

Xipe  is  in  some  measure  associated  with  that  sacred  bird 


1 Tezozomac,  Cronica  Mexicana,  c.  xci. 


220  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


the  quail,  which  has  been  connected  with  sacrifice  in  many 
lands.  This  bird  frequently  takes  refuge  in  the  last  sheaves 
of  grain  in  a harvest-field,  and  thus,  perhaps,  came  to  sym- 
bolize the  corn-spirit  driven  from  its  last  stronghold.  In 
Normandy  in  the  harvest-field  the  reapers  pretend  to  catch 
a quail  and  dispatch  it.1  The  quail  was  sacrificed  to  the 
Tyrian  Baal,2  and  is  associated  by  Robertson  Smith  with  the 
god  Eshmun-Iolaos.5  The  bird-like  character  of  Xipe’s 
dress  may  assist  us  in  the  belief  that  he  was  partially  evolved 
from  some  bird  of  the  quail  species  commonly  found  in  the 
maize-field.  He  bears  a strong  resemblance  to  the  Maya 
god  F. 

Xipe  was  probably  a maize-god  of  the  Yopi  who  came  to 
partake  of  the  character  of  an  Aztec  grain-and-sacrifice 
deity,  his  own  type  of  immolation,  the  shooting  by  arrows, 
being  partially  superseded  by  the  warrior’s  death  upon  the 
temalocatl.  It  would  seem  that,  as  the  god  of  a people  of 
Nahua  race,  but  older  in  their  occupation  of  the  land  than 
the  Azteca  and  Chichimecs,  he  probably  took  much  the  same 
line  of  development  after  his  worshippers  settled  in  the  Yopi 
country  as  Tezcatlipoca  and  Uitzilopochtli  took  in  a more 
northern  environment,  that  the  resemblance  was  recognized 
by  the  Azteca  (as  is  shown  by  his  affinity  with  Tezcatlipoca, 
with  whom,  indeed,  he  is  identified  as  Tlatlauhqui  Tezcatli- 
poca, or  “ the  Red  Tezcatlipoca  ”),  and  that  under  their 
guidance  his  festival  took  a similar  form  to  that  of  the  gods 
in  question.  His  festival  is  certainly  a mytho-dramatic 
performance  explanatory  of  the  preparation  of  the  earth  for 
the  sowing  of  grain,  the  soil  being  rehabilitated  by  the  death 
of  the  captive  warrior. 

1 J.  Lecoeur,  Esquisses  du  Bocage  Normand,  vol.  ii,  p.  240. 

2 Athenseus,  vol.  ix,  47,  p.  392  d. 

3 Religion  of  the  Semites,  new  edition,  1914,  p.  469. 


XILONEN 


221 


XILONEN  = “ YOUNG  MAIZE  MOTHER” 

Area  of  Worship  : Originally  Huichol  tribes  ; later,  Valley  of  Ana- 
huac. 

Festival  : Uei  tecuilhuitl,  in  the  eighth  month. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS.  ( Biblioteca  del  Palacio). — The  face  is  painted 
half  red,  half  yellow,  and  the  goddess  wears  a crown  of  paper 
decorated  with  quetzal- feathers.  Her  collar  is  of  green 

precious  stones  and  her  overdress  is  “ the  colour  of  spring 
flowers”  (red).  Her  skirt  is  of  the  same  hue.  She  wears 
sandals,  and  carries  a shield  with  horizontal  lines.  In  her 
hand  she  holds  a red  rattle-board. 

FESTIVAL 

The  Uei  tecuilhuitl. — The  festival  to  Xilonen  was  the  uei 
tecuilhuitl,  or  “ great  festival  of  the  chiefs,”  which  lasted  eight 
days  and  was  celebrated  when  the  maize-plant  had  almost 
reached  maturity.  Our  chief  authorities  for  its  events  are 
Sahagun  1 and  Torquemada.*  The  former  states  that  at 
this  period  of  the  year  ( June-July)  the  women  wore  their  hair 
unbound,  in  order  that  the  maize  might  be  prompted  to  grow 
in  equal  luxuriance.  During  the  days  of  the  festival  such 
persons  as  visited  the  temple  were  permitted  to  drink  abun- 
dantly of  chian  pinolli  (a  beverage  manufactured  from  the  seed 
of  the  chian  tree,  mingled  with  maize-flour  and  aloe  honey) 
and  as  much  maize-porridge  as  could  be  grasped  in  the  hand, 
to  symbolize  the  plenty  which  would  follow  the  ripening  of 
the  grain.  The  food  thus  supplied  was  the  gift  of  the  chiefs, 
from  which  circumstance  the  festival  took  its  name.  Dancing 
commenced  each  night  at  sunset,  and  was  accompanied  by 
singing,  the  scene  being  illuminated  by  the  glare  from  burning 
pine-torches. 

The  dancer  around  whom  interest  chiefly  centred  was  the 
xalaquia  (“  she  who  is  clothed  with  the  soil  ”),  a slave  girl 
who  represented  the  goddess,  wearing  her  red  face- paint, 
1 Bk.  ii,  c.  viii.  2 Bk.  x,  c.  xix. 


222  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


large  square  headdress  and  variegated  raiment.  She  was 
constantly  guarded  by  three  old  women  called  her  “ mothers,” 
and  was  sedulously  instructed  in  the  dancing-school  for  the 
part  she  had  to  play.  In  all  likelihood  she  was  kept  in  com- 
plete ignorance  of  her  impending  fate.  Day  after  day  she 
danced,  surrounded  by  the  women  of  the  community,  who 
shook  their  long  hair,  and  it  was  believed  that  the  maize-crop 
would  be  vigorous  or  the  reverse  as  her  terpsichorean  exertions 
were  spirited  or  listless.  On  the  last  day  of  the  rites,  the 
priestesses  of  the  Maize-goddess,  attired  in  her  insignia, 
gathered  together  in  the  teopan,  or  temple-precinct,  and  accom- 
panied the  victim  in  a performance  which  lasted  throughout 
the  night.  When  day  broke,  the  chief  nobles  and  warriors 
of  Mexico  joined  the  women  and  danced  a solemn  areyto,  the 
men  dancing  in  front  and  the  women  behind  them.  In  this 
manner  they  danced  to  the  foot  of  the  teocalli  of  the  goddess, 
which  they  ascended,  the  victim  being  carried  on  the  back 
of  one  of  the  priests,  after  the  manner  of  a bride  being  borne 
to  her  husband’s  house.  Arrived  at  the  summit,  she  was 
decapitated  and  her  heart  offered  to  the  goddess.  Until  she 
was  sacrificed  no  one  might  eat  of  the  new  maize,  lest  it  should 
fail  to  ripen. 

PRIESTHOOD 

The  Cinteotzin  (Lord  of  Maize),  says  Sahagun,  had  charge 
of  affairs  at  the  festival  of  Xilonen  (see  Cinteotl). 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Xilonen  appears  to  be  nothing  more  than  a deification  of 
the  young,  tender  ear  of  the  maize-plant.  Her  name,  the 
season  at  which  her  rites  took  place  and  the  youth  of  the 
xalaquia  who  represented  her  would  seem  to  bear  this  out. 
She  was  originally  a goddess  of  the  Iluichol  tribes,  and,  by 
some  circumstance  of  evolution  or  imagery,  came  to  sym- 
bolize for  the  Nahua  the  maize  in  the  earlier  stages  of  its 
ripeness,  thus  to  some  extent  resembling  Cinteotl.  Payne 
and  also  Seler  in  some  places  seem  to  confound  her  festival 


ITZPAPALOTL. 

(From  Codex  Borbonicus,  sheet  15.) 


222) 


ITZPAPALOTL. 

(From  Codex  T eUe ria no ■ Hemensis,  sheet  18,  Verso.) 


ITZI’A  PALOTL. 
(Stone  of  Aristides  Martel.) 


XILONEN.  (Sahagnn  MS.) 
(See  p.  228.) 


ZAPOTLANTENAN.  iSahatrun  MS.) 
(See  p.  228.) 


[223 


ITZPAPALOTL 


223 


with  that  of  Chicomecoatl,  and  offer  no  reasons  for  thus 
traversing  the  statements  of  the  older  authorities,  which  are 
definite  enougli  and  which  in  this  instance  I prefer  to  follow. 


ITZPAPALOTL  = “ OBSIDIAN  KNIFE  BUTTERFLY” 

Area  of  Worship  : Originally  Chichimec  tribes  ; Mexican  Plateau. 
Relationship  : Associated  with  Mixcoatl  and  the  Centzon  Mimixcoa  ; 
one  of  the  Tzitzimime. 

Symbols  : The  butterlly  ; Mixcoatl’s  stone  knife. 

Compass  Direction  : Earth  (?). 

Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  sixteenth  day,  cozcaquauhtli  ; of  the 
fifteenth  “ week,”  ce  calii. 


ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  92  : In  this  representation  and 
on  the  sheet  devoted  to  the  fifteenth  tonalamatl  division  and 
its  ruler,  Itzpapalotl  is  depicted  as  furnished  with  human 
teeth,  but  is  predominantly  animal  in  form,  retaining,  how- 
ever, certain  peculiarities  which  indicate  the  intention  that 
she  should  be  regarded  as  an  insect.  She  displays  a kind  of 
butterfly  wing,  edged  round  with  stone  knives.  Above  her 
is  figured  the  flowering  tree  broken  in  the  middle  from  which 
blood  flows.  This  symbol  denotes  the  Tamoanchan,  or  House 
of  Descent,  the  region  of  the  mythical  west,  home  of  the  maize- 
plant  and  seat  of  the  primeval  gods,  where  the  wandering 
tribes  were  said  to  have  made  a long  sojourn.  In  sheet  63 
she  is  represented  as  standing  upon  a platform,  which  seems 
to  be  covered  with  a symbolic  leaf — perhaps  that  on  which 
butterflies  are  most  usually  found.  She  has  a dark  body 
edged  with  white,  and  the  claws  and  face  are  flecked  with 
ulli  rubber  gum.  The  head  is  an  adaptation  of  that  of  Tlaloc, 
and  a short,  wheel-shaped  wing  occupies  the  back  from  nape 
to  tail-root. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  11  : In  this  place  the  goddess  is 
depicted  as  a woman  with  jaguar  claws  on  hands  and  feet. 
The  facial  painting  is  like  that  of  Tlauizcalpantecutli,  but  the 


224  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


features  are  those  of  the  Death-god — a skull  with  a stone- 
knife  nose.  She  wears  a collar  with  the  form  and  colouring 
of  a butterfly’s  wing,  and  her  dress  is  set  with  stone  knives  at 
prominent  points.  She  is  accompanied  by  an  animal  of 
rapacious  aspect,  perhaps  a jaguar  or  ocelot. 

Codex  Telleriano-Remensis. — A butterfly  with  antennae  and 
wings  acts  as  a naualli,  or  disguise  (a  kind  of  helmet-mask),  to 
a female  figure  which  has  death’s-head  teeth,  animal  claws 
on  the  hands  and  feet,  and  a blue-coloured  disk  on  the  cheek. 
As  in  Cordex  Borgia,  this  face  has  a stone  knife  on  the  nose, 
a collar  studded  with  stone  knives,  and  on  the  head  the 
warrior’s  forked  heron-feather  ornament.  The  crown  is  of 
dark  feathers,  the  sombreness  of  which  is  lightened  by  quetzal 
plumes  and  a loin-cloth  like  that  of  the  Ciuateteo  or  Ciuapipil- 
tin,  the  dead  women  who  had  perished  in  childbed,  and  who 
were  regarded  as  partaking  of  the  nature  of  warriors.  The 
end  of  the  loin-cloth  and  skirt  is  trimmed  with  a hem  of  teeth. 
As  a back-mirror  she  wears  a death’s-head,  below  which  hangs 
a “ star-skirt,”  to  the  plaited  thongs  of  which  rattling  snail- 
shells  are  attached. 

Aubin-Goupil  Tonalamail  (15th  Division). — Here  the  god- 
dess looks  out  of  a butterfly  helmet-mask.  Her  face  is 
painted  a red  colour  and  she  is  decorated  with  dark  plumage 
on  arms  and  legs.  She  has  a snail-shell  before  her  face,  and 
wears  a gold  disk  on  the  breast.  Opposite  her  are  a broken 
tree  and  a beheaded  captive,  whose  body  spouts  two  streams 
of  blood  in  the  shape  of  snakes’  heads.  She  is  seated  on  a 
throne  ornamented  with  small  disks. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — Here  the  goddess  is  pictured  as  a demon 
of  darkness,  tzitzimitl,  who  descends  from  heaven  in  the  form 
of  an  eagle. 

Bas-relief. — A bas-relief,  known  as  the  stone  of  Aristides 
Martel,  represents  the  goddess  as  in  the  act  of  flight,  and 
agrees  with  the  representations  of  her  in  the  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis  and  the  Codex  Borbonicus.  The  face  is  intended  to 
represent  that  of  an  insect  with  round  eyes  and  almost 
reptilian  mouth,  and  the  headdress  is  flat  and  covered  with 
feather  balls.  The  hands  and  feet  are  furnished  with  long 


MYTHS  OF  ITZPAPALOTL 


225 


claws.  In  this  place  the  feather-marking  of  the  goddess 
presents  a distinctly  serpentine  appearance  and  she  is  sur- 
rounded by  serpent  motifs,  between  the  folds  of  which  is 
seen  the  cross-hatching  symbolical  of  these  reptiles. 

MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  regards 
Itzpapalotl  as  a male  deity,  probably  because,  like  the 
Ciuateteo  or  women  who  died  in  childbed,  who  were  regarded 
as  the  equals  of  the  warriors,  she  wore  a male  loin-cloth. 
He  says  : “ He  was  called  Xounco  and  after  he  sinned 
Yzpapalotle.  The  sign  of  this  name  is  a Knife  of  Butter- 
flies, and  accordingly  he  is  surrounded  with  knives  and  wings 
of  butterflies  ; for  they  say  that  he  sometimes  appears  to 
them,  and  that  they  only  see  feet  resembling  those  of  an 
eagle.  Yzpapalotle  was  one  of  those  who  fell  from  heaven 
with  the  rest,  whose  names  are  the  following  : Quefalcoatle, 
Ochululuchesi,  Tezcatlipoca,  Caleteotle,  and  Hatzcanpan- 
tecoatl.” 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanns  A also  labours 
under  a misapprehension  regarding  Itzpapalotl’s  sex.  He 
states  : “ Yxpapalotl  signifies  a knife  of  butterflies.  He  was 
one  of  those  gods  who,  as  they  affirm,  was  expelled  from 
heaven  ; and  on  this  account  they  paint  him  surrounded  with 
knives  and  wings  of  butterflies.  They  represent  him  with  the 
feet  of  an  eagle,  because  they  say  that  he  occasionally  appears 
to  them,  and  they  only  see  the  feet  of  an  eagle.  They  further 
add  that,  being  in  a garden  of  great  delight,  he  pulled  some 
roses,  but  that  suddenly  the  tree  broke  and  blood  streamed 
from  it ; and  that  in  consequence  of  this  they  were  de- 
prived of  that  place  of  enjoyment  and  were  cast  into  this 
world  because  Tonacatecutli  and  his  wife  became  incensed, 
and  accordingly  they  came  some  of  them  to  the  earth,  and 
others  went  to  hell.  He  presided  over  these  thirteen  signs  ; 
the  first  of  which  the  house  ( calli ) they  considered  unfor- 
tunate, because  they  said  that  demons  came  through  the  air 
on  that  sign  in  the  figure  of  women  such  as  we  call  witches, 
who  usually  went  to  the  highways,  where  they  met  in  the  form 
of  a cross.” 

15 


226  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


In  the  song  to  Tlazolteotl,  the  fourth  of  the  Sahagun  series, 
we  find  the  following  strophes  relating  to  Itzpapalotl : 

The  stone-knife  butterfly 
Who  hovers  over  the  cactus. 

Her  food  is  on  the  Nine  Plains, 

She  was  nurtured  on  the  hearts  of  deer. 

Our  mother,  the  Earth -goddess. 

The  reference  to  the  Nine  Plains  alludes  to  the  circum- 
stance that  Itzpapalotl  is  a goddess  of  the  Chichimec,  or 
hunting  people.  The  two  first  lines  of  this  song  are  trans- 
lated by  Seler  as  follows  : 

“ O,  she  has  become  a goddess  of  the  melon  cactus. 

Our  mother  Itzpapalotl,  the  Obsidian  Butterfly.” 

The  inference  in  these  lines  seems  to  be  that  whereas 
Itzpapalotl  was  formerly  the  goddess  of  a hunting  tribe  who 
sacrificed  deer  to  her,  she  has  now  become  the  deity  of  the 
cultivated  field  and  a settled  agricultural  community.  This 
hypothesis  would  appear  to  gain  strength  from  the  text  of  the 
Anales  de  Quauhtitlan,  where  Itzpapalotl  is  spoken  of  as  the 
foundress  of  the  oldest  Chichimec  kingdom  in  Nequameyo- 
can,  “ Place  of  the  Wild  Agave.”  Camargo  states  1 that 
the  tribes  issuing  from  Chicomoztoc,  “ The  Seven  Caves,” 
first  came  to  Mazatepec,  “ The  Deer  Mountain,”  then  to  the 
province  of  Tepeueuec,  where  a victim  was  sacrificed  to  Itz- 
papalotl by  shooting  him  with  arrows,  a circumstance  which 
in  itself  proves  the  goddess  to  have  been  associated  with  the 
earth. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Like  Mixcoatl,  with  whom  she  is  closely  associated,  Itzpa- 
palotl appears  to  have  been  originally  one  of  the  ancient  stellar 
and  lightning  deities  of  the  Chichimec  or  nomadic  tribes  of 
the  northern  plains.  Later,  on  the  abandonment  of  the 
hunting  mode  of  subsistence  and  the  acceptance  of  a more 
settled  and  agricultural  mode  of  life  by  the  tribes  who  wor- 
shipped her,  Itzpapalotl  would  appear  (as  the  allusion  to 

1 Hist,  de  Tlaxcallan,  c.  v. 


NATURE  OF  ITZPAPALOTL 


227 


her  in  the  song  to  Tlazolteotl  seems  to  show)  to  have  become 
a goddess  of  the  food-supply,  the  melon-patch,  and  the  maize- 
crop.  She  was  one  of  the  Tzitzimime,  or  demons  of  darkness, 
and  as  such  symbolically  took  insect  shape  (cf.  Xochiquetzal 
as  a spider),  but  beneath  her  butterfly  form  there  lurks  the 
symbol  of  the  old,  fierce  earth-mother  with  claws  and  merci- 
less, protruding  teeth,  which  were  originally  evolved  from 
those  of  the  cipactli,  or  earth-monster.  It  seems  to  me  also 
that  she  bears  about  her  the  marks  of  the  deer,  and  at  this 
I am  not  surprised,  as  I am  convinced  that  in  many  lands  the 
deer  is  regarded  as  a surrogate  of  the  dragon,  and  is  thus 
frequently  associated  with  fire  and  water.  Indeed,  in  places, 
Itzpapalotl  is  tacitly  identified  with  the  mythical  deer 
Itzcueye,1  the  captive  and  wife  of  Mixcoatl. 

That  Itzpapalotl  is  associated  with  fire  is  probable,  and 
we  know  from  the  song  that  she  was  nurtured  on  the  hearts 
of  deer.  From  her  association  with  the  obsidian  cult  and  the 
fact  that  she  is  closely  connected  with  Mixcoatl,  whose  obsid- 
ian knife  is  her  symbol,  I should  not  be  surprised  to  find 
further  evidence  that  she  is  in  some  manner  identified  with 
the  lightning,  the  heavenly  fire,  or  the  stars.  Again,  we  know 
that  the  butterfly  was  in  some  measure  associated  with  the 
Ciuateteo,  the  women  who  died  in  childbed.  We  know,  too, 
from  Sahagun’s  account  that  at  the  festival  of  the  Ciuateteo 
the  people  offered  cakes  stamped  with  a butterfly  and  S- 
shaped  cakes  to  these  spirits,  to  represent  the  lightning.  In 
Codex  Telleriano-Remensis,  Itzpapalotl  wears  the  male  loin- 
cloth, like  the  Ciuateteo , and  in  Codex  V aticanus  B (sheet 
92)  there  is  represented  near  her  a flowering  tree  broken  in 
the  middle  and  spouting  blood,  the  glyph  or  symbol  of 
Tamoanchan,  the  paradise  of  the  west,  where  dwelt  the 
Ciuateteo.  In  the  Mexican  mind  the  gaudy  hues  of  the 
butterfly  may  have  become  associated  with  the  brilliance  of 
the  western  sky  at  sunset,  and  this  may  account  for  the 
connexion  which  undoubtedly  exists  between  Itzpapalotl  and 
the  western  home  of  the  Ciuateteo.  Again,  the  insect  may 

1 This  deer  is  two-headed  ; so  is  Quaxolotl  a variant  of  Chantico,  the  Fire- 
goddess,  with  whom  Itzpapalotl  seems  to  have  many  points  of  resemblance. 


228  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


typify  the  frivolous  nature  of  these  dead  women.1  However, 
the  precise  significance  of  this  goddess  is  by  no  means  easy 
to  arrive  at,  and  in  any  case  is  composed  of  elements  of  con- 
siderable obscurity  and  diversity.8 

Tezcatlipoca,  it  may  be  recalled,  is  “ the  obsidian  snake.” 
His  obsidian  sandals  in  some  MSS.  bear  the  zigzag  lines  of 
the  snake  and,  as  has  already  been  said,  the  footgear  is 
frequently  eloquent  of  the  name  or  character  of  a person 
or  divinity  in  Mexican  painting.  In  Itzpapalotl  we  seem 
to  see  another  deity  of  the  obsidian  cult.  Certain  of  her 
pictures  as  a butterfly  are,  as  has  been  indicated,  of  dragon- 
like aspect,  and  we  know  that  the  butterfly  is  in  some 
countries  a surrogate  of  the  dragon.  Is  obsidian  to  be  re- 
garded as  the  “ bones  ” of  the  cipactli,  the  earth-beast  or 
dragon  ? 

ZAPOTLANTENAN  = “ MOTHER  OF  ZAPOTLAN  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico  ; Zapotlan. 

Symbol  : The  eagle-feather. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS.  ( Biblioteca  del  Palacio ). — Behind  the  region  of 
the  chin  and  on  the  front  part  of  the  neck  the  goddess  has  a 
black,  almost  beard-like  painting.  She  wears  a crown  of  paper 
flecked  with  alii  gum,  and  decorated  at  the  top  with  quetzal- 
feathers.  Her  collar  is  of  chalchihuitl  stones  and  she  wears 
a plain  overdress  and  skirt  edged  with  horizontal  bands, 
connected  by  slanting  strips.  Her  feet  are  sandalled,  and  her 
shield  has  the  insignia  of  the  eagle-feather.  In  her  hand  she 
carries  the  rattle-staff  of  the  Rain-god. 

PRIESTHOOD 

Sahagun  states  (Appendix  to  bk.  ii)  that  Zapotlantenan 
had  a special  high-priest,  the  Zapotlan  teohuatzin,  who  was 
charged  with  making  all  the  necessary  arrangements  for  the 

1 See  Xochipilli. 

2 In  some  myths  of  the  Old  World  the  butterfly  is  the  soul  or  ghost.  This 
would  explain  her  connexion  with  the  Ciuateted,  or  dead  women. 


ILAMATECUTLI 


229 


festival  of  that  goddess,  such  as  procuring  a supply  of  paper, 
copal,  ulli , and  odoriferous  plants  for  incense.  Clavigero 
says  that  she  was  annually  honoured  with  the  sacrifice  of 
human  victims  and  with  particular  hymns  composed  in  her 
praise.1 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Sahagun  states  8 that  she  was  said  to  have  been  the  inventor 
or  discoverer  of  turpentine,  which  was  used  in  Mexico  for 
medicinal  purposes,  and  it  seems  probable  that  she  may  have 
been  revered  as  a goddess  of  medicine.  Clearly  she  is  also 
an  earth-goddess  of  the  people  of  the  populous  valley  of 
Zapotlan,  on  the  other  side  of  the  Otomi  country,  adopted 
into  the  Mexican  pantheon,  but  having  no  place  in  the 
calendar. 


ILAMATECUTLI  = “ THE  OLD  PRINCESS  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Tehuacan  (?)  ; Cozcatlan  (?)  ; Chichimec. 
Minor  Names  : 

Citlallinicue  = “ She  of  the  Starry  Skirt.” 

Cozcamiauh  = “ Necklace  of  Maize.” 

Calendar  Place  : Thirteenth  of  the  lords  of  the  day-hours. 
Compass  Direction  : The  Middle. 

Festival  : Tititl  (“  stretching  of  limbs  ”)  in  the  seventeenth  month. 
Relationship  : Spouse  of  Iztae  Mixcoatl  ; variant  of  Tonacaciuatl  or 
Ciuacoatl. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheets  9,  11  : In  this  representation  the 
goddess  is  shown  with  hair  composed  of  heron-feathers  and 
wearing  a white  garment.  In  the  pictures  of  this  codex  the 
contracted  corners  of  her  mouth,  due  to  old  age,  are  indicated 
by  a ring-shaped  ornament  worn  below  the  upper  lip. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — She  has  a skeleton’s  head,  which  differs 
from  that  of  the  Death-god  in  that  it  is  coloured  yellow,  with 
red  lines  instead  of  black,  but  shows  a similarity  to  it  in  the 
ruffled  “ night-hair  ” with  which  it  is  covered.  In  most  of 
the  pictures  of  her  in  this  codex  her  blue  dress  is  dotted  with 
1 Vol.  i,  bk.  vi  (English  translation).  » Bk.  i,  e.  ix. 


230  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


circular  white  spots  which  are  perhaps  intended  for  stars. 
This  garment  is  completed  with  thongs,  from  which  depend 
snail-shells,  a decoration  also  seen  in  the  rattling  girdle 
ornaments  ( citlalicue ) characteristic  of  the  Earth  and  Under- 
world goddesses. 

MYTHS 

According  to  the  myth  related  by  Motolinia,1  Ilamatecutli 
or  Ilancueye,  as  he  designates  her,  was  the  wife  of  Iztac 
Mixcoatl  (q.v.),  with  whom  she  dwelt  in  Chicomoztoc,  “ the 
land  of  the  seven  canes,”  the  mythical  officina  gentium  of 
the  Mexican  tribes,  whence  the  aboriginal  ancestors  of  the 
several  races  of  Mexico  were  supposed  to  have  had  their 
being.  By  a second  wife,  Chinamatl,  or  Chimalmat,  Iztac 
Mixcoatl  became  the  father  of  Quetzalcoatl. 

FESTIVAL 

Tititl  (“  Stretching  of  Limbs  ”). — This  festival  was  held  in 
the  Kalends  of  the  seventeenth  month,  probably  about 
December  19. * A female  slave  was  bought  by  the  authorities 
and  dressed  as  follows  : She  wore  an  upper  garment  or  peplum 
of  white  stuff  and  a skirt  of  the  same  colour,  beneath  which 
showed  the  citlalicue,  or  star-skirt,  of  the  goddess,  a dress 
sprinkled  with  stars,  cut  at  the  ankles  in  the  shape  of  many 
thongs,  from  each  of  which  hung  a small  shell,  so  that  when 
she  walked  these  came  together  and  made  a rattling  sound. 
Her  sandals  were  white  and  she  bore  a shield  whitened  with 
chalk,  having  a design  of  eagle’s  feathers  in  the  centre. 
Fringes  of  heron’s  feathers  terminating  in  eagle’s  plumes  hung 
from  the  lower  edge  of  the  shield.  In  the  other  hand  she 
carried  the  tzotozopaztli,  a wooden  knife,  used  for  pressing 
cloth.  Her  face  was  painted  black  and  yellow.  Her  hair 
was  dressed  in  the  form  known  as  tzompilinalli,  or  “ hair  tied 
at  the  temples,”  and  eagle’s  plumes  fell  from  it  behind. 

Before  the  victim  was  dispatched  they  made  her  dance  to 
the  sound  of  instruments  played  by  old  men,  which  mingled 

1 Hist,  de  los  Indios  de  la  Nueva  Espafia  (Epistola  Proemial). 

2 Sahagun,  bk.  ii.,  c.  xxxvi ; Torquemada,  bk.  x,  c.  xxix. 


RITES  OF  ILAMATECUTLI 


231 


with  the  chanting  of  the  priests.  The  wretched  woman  wept 
and  sobbed  as  she  danced,  and  as  evening  approached  she  was 
taken  to  the  temple  of  Uitzilopochtli,  accompanied  by  all 
the  priests  wearing  their  insignia  and  the  masks  of  their  gods, 
one  of  which  was  that  of  Ilamatecutli.  On  arriving  at  the 
summit  of  the  teocalli,  or  pyramid-temple,  she  was  immedi- 
ately slain,  her  heart  was  torn  out  and  she  was  decapitated. 
The  head  was  given  to  the  priest  attired  in  the  insignia  of 
the  goddess,  who  held  it  in  his  right  hand  by  the  hair,  and 
engaged  in  a dance,  raising  and  lowering  the  horrid  trophy, 
and  in  this  solemn  measure  he  was  accompanied  by  the  priests 
who  represented  the  other  divinities.  They  then  descended 
the  steps  of  the  teocalli  in  procession,  and  sought  their 
quarters. 

The  priest  of  Ilamatecutli  carried  a great  cane,  the  stock 
of  which  had  three  roots.  The  mask  of  the  goddess  which 
he  bore  had  two  faces  with  “ great  mouths,  bulging  eyes, 
and  surmounted  by  a crown  of  paper  cut  into  sharp  points.” 
The  priests,  disguised  as  gods,  having  entered  the  calpulli, 
or  priests’  quarters,  a priest  descended  from  the  teocalli 
dressed  as  a young  exquisite,  wearing  a splendid  cloak,  his 
head  decorated  with  white  plumes  and  wearing  in  place  of 
sandals  the  hoofs  of  a deer.  He  carried  in  his  hand  a leaf  of 
the  maguey , surmounted  by  a little  paper  banner.  He 
proceeded  to  the  quauhxicalco,  a place  of  sacrifice  principally 
associated  with  human  offerings  to  Tezcatlipoca,  where  there 
was  a small  cage  made  of  pine-wood  and  covered  with  paper, 
and  known  as  “ the  granary  of  Ilamatecutli.”  The  priest 
laid  the  maguey-leai  in  this  receptacle  and  then  set  the  whole 
on  fire.  Seeing  this,  the  other  priests  rushed  to  the  summit 
of  the  teocalli.  This  ceremony  was  known  as  the  xochipayna, 
or  “ flower-running.”  Placing  on  high  a flower  called 
teoxochitl,  or  “ blossom  of  the  god,”  the  first  who  gained  the 
eminence  seized  upon  it  and  cast  it  upon  the  quauhxicalco 
where  the  “ cage  ” burned.  Upon  the  following  day  the 
men  and  boys  made  little  sacks,  which  they  filled  with  flowers 
or  paper,  and  with  these  they  skirmished  with  one  another 
and  beat  the  young  girls  who  chanced  to  pass  by. 


232  DEITIES  OF  THE  EARTH  AND  GROWTH  PROPER 


The  purpose  underlying  this  celebration  is  obscure.  The 
costume  worn  by  the  victim  is,  of  course,  that  of  the  goddess 
herself,  and  we  may,  perhaps,  infer  that  the  wooden  knife 
she  carried,  the  purpose  of  which  was  to  press  cloth,  was 
symbolical  of  one  of  the  domestic  duties  of  the  older  women, 
whom  she  appears  in  a measure  to  have  represented.  The 
exercise  of  dancing  to  which  the  victim  was  subjected  seems 
to  bear  reference  to  the  name  of  the  festival,  tititl , the 
“ stretching  of  limbs,”  and  its  purpose  was  probably  to 
ensure  vigour  and  “ liveliness  ” in  the  earth  or  soil,  for  it  was 
about  this  period  that  the  winter  solstice  occurred  and  the 
labours  of  the  field  were  renewed.  The  Earth-mother  must, 
therefore,  stretch  her  limbs  ere  she  once  more  took  up  the 
great  task  of  growth.1 

The  decapitation  of  the  slave  girl  was  probably  a dramatic- 
mythical  representation  of  the  reaping  of  the  maize.  The 
“ great  cane  ” borne  by  the  priest  of  Ilamatecutli  was,  of 
course,  the  magic  rain-rattle,  so  prominent  an  adjunct  to 
many  Mexican  religious  ceremonies.  The  “ young  ex- 
quisite ” we  must  surely  explain  as  a representative  of  vege- 
tation, his  deer’s-hoofs  sandals  having,  perhaps,  a pluvial 
significance,  or  else  indicating  the  swift  growth  of  the  maize- 
plant,  which  takes  but  four  months  to  ripen.  The  burning 
of  the  maguey-\eaf  in  the  granary  would  seem  to  indicate  the 
end  of  the  season  of  vegetative  luxuriance  and  the  commence- 
ment of  that  of  domestic  fires,  and  the  casting  of  the  sacred 
blossom  into  the  flames  probably  possessed  a similar  signifi- 
cance. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Ilamatecutli  was  unquestionably  a goddess  of  the  primeval 
time,  as  her  aged  appearance  in  the  manuscripts,  her  associa- 

1 It  occurred  to  the  writer  that  the  expression  tititl  may  have  had  reference 
to  the  act  of  sexual  impregnation,  as  in  the  case  of  Tlazolteotl  (q.v.),  who 
“ widens  herself,  stretches  herself  out  ” at  the  foot  of  the  teocalli  of  Uitzilo- 
pochtli,  when  she  is  impregnated  by  that  deity.  This  consideration  scarcely 
seems  to  apply  to  the  present  instance,  however,  and  that  indicated  above 
appears  preferable. 


NATURE  OF  ILAMATECUTLI 


233 


tion  with  Iztac  Mixcoatl,  the  old  Chichimec  god,  and  her 
connexion  with  fire  would  lead  us  to  suppose.  She  is  prim- 
arily a goddess  of  the  earth  and  of  maize.  Her  stellar  con- 
nexion and  her  name  Citlallinicue  (Star  Skirt)  are  eloquent 
of  her  Chichimec  derivation,  and  she  may  represent  the 
starry  night  sky,  or  possibly  the  Milky  Way,  just  as  does  her 
mythical  husband,  and  in  this  she  connects  with  Tonacaciuatl. 
As  an  earth-goddess  she  has  also  a plutonic  significance  and 
can  be  equated  with  Mictecaciuatl,  mistress  of  Hades,  in  this 
resembling  many  other  earth-goddesses.  Again,  she  is  the 
“ old  goddess  ” par  excellence,  patroness  of  old  women,  and 
worker  at  the  metate,  or  stone  on  which  the  maize  cakes  were, 
and  still  are,  made  by  Mexican  women.  Her  connexion 
with  fire  proves  her  relative  antiquity.  The  circumstance 
that  her  mask  is  described  as  being  two-faced  leads  me  to 
believe  that  her  idol  or  image  had  been  evolved  from  the 
“ Kirn-baby,”  or  doll  made  at  harvests  out  of  the  last  sheaf 
of  grain  and  furnished  with  a face  and  hands,  frequently  with 
two  faces,  in  order  that  it  should  not  prove  of  bad  omen  to 
those  following  the  image  in  procession.  In  this  respect 
Uamatecutli  is  similar  to  Chicomecoatl  (q.v.). 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 

INTRODUCTORY 

THE  gods  of  rain  proper  are  clearly  to  be  distinguished 
from  the  gods  of  grain  and  growth,  although  they 
were  regarded  by  the  ancient  Mexicans  as  stimulating 
vegetable  plenteousness.  That  they  were  paramount  in  the 
practical  theology  of  the  rain- cult  1 is  evident,  for,  whereas 
Quetzalcoatl  was  regarded  in  one  of  his  phases  as  the  deifica- 
tion of  the  rain-making  priest,  Tlaloc  and  the  Tlaloque 
possessed  the  entire  disposition  of  the  rainfall.  Sahagun’s 
remarks  upon  Quetzalcoatl  make  it  clear  that  in  this  connexion 
he  was  regarded  as  a wind -god  who  swept  the  way  clear  for 
the  rain-gods,  or  ushered  in  the  rains.  Myth  related  how 
Quetzalcoatl,  the  first  discoverer  of  the  maize,  was  robbed 
of  his  find  by  Tlaloc,  who  afterwards  had  the  governance 
over  its  growrth  and  distribution.  Although  the  high-priest 
of  the  Mexican  hierarchy  wras  called  by  the  name  of  Quetzal- 
coatl, the  prelate  next  in  importance  to  him  bore  the  name 
of  Tlaloc. 

Although  Quetzalcoatl  was  above  all  regarded . by  the 
Azteca  as  a god  of  wTind,  evidence  is  not  lacking  that  to  some 
extent  he  was  looked  upon  as  a rain-god,  or  at  least  a rain- 
bringing god.  But  the  overwhelming  superiority  of  the 
Tlaloque  in  this  cult  is  witnessed  to  by  the  fact  that  out  of 
eighteen  great  seasonal  festivals,  no  less  than  five  wrere 
dedicated  to  them.2 

Those  of  the  Tlaloque,  or  gods  of  rain,  whose  names  are 

1 See  remarks  upon  the  Tlaloc  cult  in  the  Introduction. 

2 See  my  remarks  upon  Quetzalcoatl  in  the  section  which  deals  with  him, 
and  where  he  is  identified  with  the  trade-wind  which  brings  the  rain. 

234 


THE  TLALOQUE  235 

known  were  : Tlaloc,  the  father  of  all,  Chalchihuitlicue,  his 
wife  and  sister,  Nappatecutli,  god  of  the  mat-makers,  who 
used  aquatic  reeds  in  their  work,  Atlaua,  “ Lord  of  the 
Beaches  ” or  lake  shores,  Uixtociuatl,  goddess  of  salt,  and 
Opochtli,  god  of  fishers  and  fowlers,  and  inventor  of  the  net. 

Concerning  the  Tlaloque  Sahagun  remarks  : “ The  Mexi- 
cans take  for  gods  all  those  high  mountains  from  which  the 
rain  comes  in  the  rainy  season,  and  for  each  of  these  they 
imagine  an  idol.  . . . They  also  believe  that  certain  maladies 
proceeding  from  cold  have  their  origin  in  the  mountains  and 
that  these  gods  have  the  power  to  visit  them  upon  them. 
Those  who  were  attacked  by  such  complaints  made  a vow  to 
this  or  that  mountain,  whichever  chanced  to  be  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood, or  that  for  which  they  entertained  the  most 
devotion.  A similar  vow  was  made  by  persons  on  the  point 
of  being  drowned  in  the  rivers  or  in  the  sea.  The  maladies 
for  which  they  made  these  vows  were  gout  in  the  hands,  feet, 
or  any  other  part  of  the  body,  impotence  in  any  member, 
or  in  the  entire  body,  rheumatism,  the  contraction  of  the 
members  or  cramp.  Those  who  were  visited  with  these 
maladies  made  a vow  to  raise  a statue  to  the  following  gods  : 
to  the  idols  of  the  volcano  called  Popocatepetl  in  the  Sierra 
Nevada,  to  a mountain  named  Poyauhtecatl,  or  any  other 
to  which  the  feeling  of  devotion  inclined  them.  When  they 
proposed  to  offer  up  to  the  mountain  or  gods,  they  made  an 
image  in  human  form,  a mass  called  tzoalli.,y  1 These  the  people 
did  not  make  themselves,  but  called  in  the  offices  of  those 
priests  skilled  in  the  making  of  idols,  who  moulded  them  out 
of  the  paste  and  gave  them  teeth  of  calabash  pips  and  eyes 
of  haricot  beans.  The  rest  of  the  process  of  manufacture  is 
as  described  in  the  account  of  the  festival  of  the  atemoztli 
(see  Tlaloc).  These  small  figures  were  known  as  teyictoton, 
and,  like  the  sacrificial  victims  to  the  rain-gods,  their  hair 
was  dressed  in  two  horns  or  whorls. 

TLALOC  = “ HE  WHO  MAKES  THINGS  SPROUT” 

Area  of  Worship  : Plateau  of  Anahuac. 

Minor  Names  : Chicunaui  Ocelotl  = “ Nine  Jaguar  ” (or  ocelot). 

*tBk.  i,  c.  xxL 


236  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  seventh  day-count,  mazatl  (deer),  and 
of  the  seventh  tonalamatl  division,  ce  quiautl  (one  rain). 
Compass  Direction  : The  four  quarters  in  his  several  aspects. 
Festivals  : Atlacahualco,  tozoztontli,  etzalqualiztli,  tepeilhuitl,  ate- 
moztli. 

Symbols  : His  head,  with  serpentine  motif  and  tusks  ; the  day-sign 
nine  ocelot. 

Relationship  : Husband  (1)  of  Xochiquetzal  ; (2)  of  Matlalcueye 
or  Chalchiuhtlicue.  Father  or  brother  of  the  Tlaloque. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

The  evolution  of  the  familiar  and  characteristic  face  of 
Tlaloc  is  perhaps  best  exemplified  in  a stone  statuette  included 
in  the  Uhde  collection  in  the  Royal  Ethnological  Museum, 
Berlin.  In  this  striking  example  of  the  Mexican  sculptor’s 
art  a representation  of  the  face  of  the  god  is  skilfully  contrived 
by  the  arrangement  of  two  snakes  or  serpents,  the  tails  of 
which  form  eye-orbits  and  a species  of  nose,  the  reptiles’ 
heads  meeting  in  the  region  of  the  mouth,  their  fangs  thus 
serving  the  god  for  teeth.  It  is  rarely  in  aboriginal  art  that 
a conception  so  individual  and  striking  is  encountered,  and 
great  imaginative  ability  must  be  conceded  the  sculptor  who 
conceived  it.  It  is  not  known  whether  the  later  pictures 
and  carvings  of  Tlaloc  were  evolved  from  this  effigy,  but  it  is 
not  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  either  from  it  or  similar 
representations  the  later  conception  of  him  came  into  being. 
We  observe  in  the  examples  shown  in  the  illustrations  that 
the  custom  of  representing  divine  beings  in  profile  resulted 
in  his  case  in  the  survival  of  a mere  ring  about  the  eye  and  a 
spirally  convoluted  band  forming  the  upper  lip  and  depending 
from  it  for  some  distance.  These  are  painted  blue  in  the 
MSS.  More  faithfully  preserved  are  the  long  tusk-like  teeth, 
which  in  certain  stone  effigies,  however,  degenerate  into 
several  straight,  downward  strokes.  This  head  of  the  Rain- 
god  is  almost  invariably  reproduced  as  the  symbol  for  the 
day-sign  atl  (water). 

Representations  of  Tlaloc  in  the  codices  of  the  Borgia 
group  occasionally  show  a development  of  the  lip-band, 
which  rises  upwards  and  includes  the  nose,  thus,  perhaps, 


(From  Codex  Magliabecchiano,  3 fol.,  sheet  34.) 


:36] 


FORMS  OF  TLALOC. 


(From  Codex  Fejervd.ru- Mayer,  sheet  14.) 


(From  Codex  Vaticanus  A,  sheet  20.) 
FORMS  OF  TLALOC. 


[237 


INSIGNIA  OF  TLALOC 


237 


indicating  a transition  form.  In  the  Vatican  B,  Fejervary- 
Mayer,  and  Laud  Codices  the  prolongation  of  the  lip-band 
and  its  serpentine  character  are  apparent,  the  snake’s  teeth 
and  eye  being  clearly  visible. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  14  : In  this  place  the  body-paint  of 
Tlaloc  is  green,  although,  as  a rule,  it  is  black  elsewhere. 
The  face  is  half-black,  half-yellow.  The  eye  and  lip-bands 
are  blue.  The  head  is  crowned  with  white  heron-feathers, 
such  as  are  worn  by  the  octli  gods.  A fillet  surrounds  the 
forehead,  and  from  this  spring  four  rosettes,  which  may 
symbolize  the  four  quarters  from  which  the  rain  falls.  The 
headdress  and  its  accompanying  ornaments  are  painted  in 
alternate  stripes,  green  and  white,  sprinkled  with  liquid 
rubber.  A paper  tie  adorns  the  shoulder,  such  as  was  used 
for  the  decoration  of  offerings,  or  in  the  ceremonial  arrange- 
ment of  the  dead.  The  ear-plug  is  square,  to  indicate, 
perhaps,  the  four  quarters.  It  is  in  this  codex  (sheet  12) 
that  we  obtain  the  best  evidence  of  the  reflection  of  the 
various  points  of  the  compass  upon  the  character  of  the  great 
god  of  rain. 

But  the  most  important  pictures  in  Codex  Borgia  relating  to 
Tlaloc  are  those  on  sheet  27,  which  illustrate  the  cycle  of  fifty- 
two  years,  and  show  in  the  four  corner  compartments  the  four 
days  which  form  the  initial  days  of  the  four  quarters  of  the 
cycle.  They  do  not,  however,  commence  with  ce  acail , “ one 
reed,”  ce  tecpatl,  “ one  flint,”  ce  calli,  “ one  house,”  ce  tochtli, 
“ one  rabbit,”  as  might  be  expected,1  but  with  ce  cipactli, 
“ one  earth-beast,”  ce  miquiztli,  “ one  death,”  ce  ozomatli, 
“ one  monkey,”  and  ce  cozcaquauhtli,  “ one  vulture,”  for  the 
reason  that  the  tonalamatl  signs  here  shown  are  hieroglyphic 
of  the  four  quarters  of  the  heavens,  rather  than  allusive  to 
the  dates  of  the  grand  cycle  of  fifty-two  years.  The  middle 
or  fifth  region,  which  is  without  a hieroglyph,  is  ascribed  to 
the  central  figure.  The  lower  to  the  right  represents  the 
east.  To  it  belongs  the  first  division  of  the  calendar,  as  wrell 
as  the  first  day  of  the  great  cycle.  Tlaloc  in  this  picture  is 
painted  a dark  colour,  and  wears  the  cipactli  head  of  the  first 

1 See  Appendix,  the  Tonalamatl  and  the  Solar  Calendar. 


238 


THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


calendar  division  as  a helmet-mask.  The  sky  above  him  is 
figuratively  drawn  to  represent  a cloudy  firmament  holding 
rain  about  to  fall,  and  he  stands  upon  the  cipactli,  or  earth- 
beast,  which  symbolizes  the  fruitful  earth,  from  whose  body 
springs  the  maize-plant,  represented  as  a tiny  head  or  mask, 
on  each  side  of  which  sprout  leaves.  The  god  empties  his 
jar  upon  the  soil,  and  its  contents  are  seen  to  be  a renewed 
supply  of  maize-ears,  indicating  the  bounteous  nature  of  the 
eastern  Tlaloc. 

The  figure  on  the  upper  right  shows  the  deity  in  his  northern 
aspect.  The  second  division  of  the  tonalamatl  and  of  the 
cycle  are  indicated  in  its  dating  and  on  its  helmet-mask. 
The  yellow  colour  of  the  god  in  this  picture  is  supplemented 
by  the  symbolism  of  a bright  atmosphere  sending  down 
sharp  rays  of  light,  shown  in  conventional  form  by  V-shaped 
emblems  stabbing  downwards  from  aloft.  Beneath  the  god 
are  shown  three  vessels  filled  with  the  brown-coloured  water 
which  falls  when  the  Rain-god  is  unpropitious.  Indeed,  it 
bears  within  it  the  symbols  of  death,  the  death’s-head  eye 
and  bony  nasal  spine.  The  artistic  effort  is  to  portray  water 
which  has  been  sucked  up  by  the  parched  and  cracked  soil 
of  a Mexican  June — water  which  has  been  insufficient  in 
quantity,  or  has  fallen  too  late.  There  are  present,  too,  in 
the  picture,  the  vampire  shapes  of  such  insects  as  devour  the 
maize,  each  decorated  with  the  death’s-head.  But,  more 
fatal  sign  than  all,  from  the  pitcher  of  the  god  descends  the 
lightning-axe,  wrapped  in  symbolic  fire.  The  northern 
Tlaloc,  then,  is  no  deity  of  plenty,  but  obviously  represents 
the  Rain-god  in  his  most  deadly  and  terrible  aspect.  The  god 
in  his  western  complexion  is  painted  blue,  and  wears  as  a 
helmet-mask  the  sign  of  the  third  calendar  division.  A 
cloudy  sky  flecked  with  rain  shows  the  partial  descent  of  the 
serpent-like  showers,  and  the  maize-plants  beneath  him 
stand  in  heavy  puddles  of  water.  The  southern  aspect  of 
Tlaloc  (that  on  the  lower  left)  is  painted  red,  and  the  helmet- 
mask  is  in  vulture  form,  as  in  consonance  with  the  sign  of  the 
fourth  calendar  division.  From  a cloudless  sky  dart  the 
conventional  sun-rays  as  described  in  the  second  picture,  but 


INSIGNIA  OF  TLALOC 


239 


beneath  the  foot  of  the  divinity  are  representations  of  the 
maize-plant  run  to  seed.  Small  animals,  the  faces  of  which 
bear  some  resemblance  to  a death’s-head,  devour  them. 
Once  again  the  lightning-axe  falls  from  the  jar  held  by  the 
god,  accompanied  by  its  bright,  symbolic  flame.  The  central 
figure  represents  the  influence  of  the  Rain-god  from  the  zenith. 
The  Tlaloc  who  presides  over  this  situation  is  striped  red 
and  white  (the  colours  of  night  and  twilight)  and  he  is  repre- 
sented in  the  normal  insignia  of  the  ltain-god.  He  is  accom- 
panied by  the  signs  for  day  and  night,  and  the  earth-goddesses 
cluster  around  his  feet.  From  the  jar  he  holds  are  poured 
all  manner  of  warlike  implements — the  atlatl,  javelin,  shield, 
and  banner. 

The  similar  fivefold  representation  of  Tlaloc  on  sheet  28 
is  believed  by  Seler  to  illustrate  his  connexion  with  the 
Venus  period. 

Codex  V aticanus  A. — Sheet  20  : Here  Tlaloc  is  represented 
with  the  body  painted  black,  the  fore-part  of  the  face  black 
and  the  hinder  portion  yellow.  His  chin  is  bearded  and  the 
lip-band  is  prolonged,  as  described  above.  In  front  of  his 
mantle  is  a stone  knife,  from  which  fire  issues.  His  attire 
is  painted  in  alternate  stripes  of  black  and  green,  flecked  with 
melted  rubber.  He  wears  the  fillet  ofTonatiuh,  the  Sun-god, 
and  the  strips  of  hide  which  fall  from  the  'panache  of  feathers 
on  his  head  are  also  part  of  the  Sun-god’s  insignia.  He  holds 
a burnt  offering  of  firewood  and  rubber  in  his  hand,  enveloped 
in  a covering  painted  black  and  green,  flecked  alternately. 
The  type  of  the  tarns  or  pools  into  which  such  offerings  were 
cast  is  depicted  in  front  of  him,  in  the  depths  of  which  are 
seen  fishes  and  snails. 

Codex  Magliabecchiano. — Sheet  92  : Here  he  is  represented 
in  female  costume  and,  as  in  the  Sahagun  MSS.,  a white 
circular  spot  or  patch  with  black  dots  is  visible  on  the  god’s 
cheek,  which,  the  text  implies,  was  made  of  the  crushed  seed 
of  the  Mexican  prickly  poppy  ( Argemone  Mexicana). 

General. — Other  details  in  the  costume  of  the  Rain-god 
are  eloquent  of  his  nature  and  characteristics.  In  the 
Borgia  group  of  codices  his  garment  and  headdress  are  dark 


240  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


green,  flecked  with  melted  rubber,  whilst  in  those  codices 
from  the  Mexican  country  proper  we  find  them  painted  blue, 
bespotted  with  the  same  unpleasant  incense.  His  robe,  the 
anachxecilli  (“dripping-garment,”  “cloud-garment”),  is 
said  to  be  “ set  with  green  gems,”  and  in  his  ear  is  a broad 
plate  with  a dependent  band  on  which  are  worked  smaller 
figures  made  of  chalchihuitl  stones.  On  his  breast  he  wears 
a wide  collar  of  plaited  stuff  (reeds  ?)  also  enriched  with  the 
precious  green  stone  typical  of  water,  and  a large  gold  disk. 

In  Codex  V aticanus  A,  the  Codex  Magliabecchiano,  and  the 
Sahagun  MSS.  we  find  him  wearing  at  the  nape  of  his  neck 
a large  crescent-shaped  loop  which  projects  on  each  side  of 
the  head  and  is  secured  in  the  middle  by  a rosette,  as  well  as 
his  crown  of  heron -feathers.  In  the  Codex  V aticanus  B a 
large  fan-shaped  object  painted  dark  green  and  white  projects 
behind  the  head  of  the  god.  In  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  14),  too, 
he  wears  the  headdress  of  Mayauel,  the  goddess  of  the  agave 
plant,  but  the  colours  in  which  it  is  painted  (dark  green  and 
white  with  rubber  flecking)  are  his  own  and  not  the  blue  and 
white  of  the  female  divinity. 

In  the  Codex  Magliabecchiano  (sheet  77)  and  on  a stone 
relief  in  the  Trocadero  Museum,  Tlaloc  is  represented  as 
holding  a jug  in  one  hand  and  a staff  in  the  other,  the  latter 
of  a blue  colour  and  having  serpentine  bands  in  its  length. 
In  Codices  V aticanus  B and  A he  also  holds  this  serpentine 
wand  and  in  the  other  the  incense-pouch  marked  with  a cross, 
to  symbolize  the  four  quarters  of  the  heavens.  Occasionally 
he  is  seen  holding  the  agave  thorn  or  spike  and  the  omitl  bone, 
the  implements  of  mortification,  as  in  Codex  Borbonicus  and 
Codex  Borgia  (sheet  67). 

Gama  ( Dos  Piedras,  pt.  i,  p.  101  ; pt.  ii,  pp.  76-79)  states 
that  in  Tlaloc’s  left  hand  was  a shield  ornamented  with 
feathers.  In  his  right  were  thin,  wavy  sheets  of  gold, 
representing  his  thunderbolts,  or  sometimes  a golden  serpent, 
representing  either  the  thunderbolt  or  moisture.  On  his 
feet  were  a kind  of  half-boots,  with  little  bells  of  gold  hanging 
therefrom.  Round  his  neck  was  a band  or  collar  set  with 
gold  and  gems,  while  from  his  wrists  depended  strings  of 


(From  Coder  Land.) 


I'1'! 

Stone  figure  (from  Castella  del  Teayo.) 


FORMS  OF  TLAT.OC. 


FICTILE  MODELS  OF  TLALOC 


241 


costly  stones.  His  dress  was  an  azure  smock,  reaching  to 
the  middle  of  the  thigh,  cross-hatched  all  over  with  ribbons 
of  silver  forming  squares,  and  in  the  middle  of  each  square 
was  a circle  of  silver,  while  in  the  angle  thereof  were  flowers, 
pearl-coloured,  with  yellow  leaves  hanging  down.  His  shield 
was  similarly  decorated,  with  feathers  of  yellow  and  green, 
flesh-colour  and  blue,  each  colour  forming  a distinct  band. 
The  body  was  naked  from  mid-thigh  down,  and  of  a grey  tint, 
as  was  also  the  face.  This  face  had  only  one  eye,  of  a some- 
what extraordinary  character  : there  was  an  exterior  circle 
of  blue,  the  interior  was  white  with  a black  line  across  it, 
and  a little  semicircle  below  the  line.  Either  round  the 
whole  eye  or  round  the  mouth  was  a doubled  band  or  ribbon 
of  blue.  In  the  open  mouth  were  three  grinders.  The  front 
teeth  were  painted  red,  as  was  also  the  pendant  with  its  button 
of  gold  that  hung  from  his  ear.  He  wore  an  open  crown  of 
white  and  green  feathers,  from  which  depended  red  and 
white  plumes. 

Ixtlilxochitl  represents  him  in  the  month  etzalli  pictured 
with  a cane  of  maize  in  the  one  hand,  and  in  the  other  an 
instrument  with  which  he  is  digging  the  ground,  in  which  he 
places  maize-leaves  and  a kind  of  food,  like  fritters, called  etzalli. 

Sahagun  MS. — This  states  that  the  god’s  face  was  entirely 
black  with  a few  spots  of  salvia  chia.  The  body  was  also  of 
a dark  colour.  He  wears  a “ mist  ” or  “ cloud  ” shirt  with- 
out sleeves,  in  the  Toltec  fashion,  falling  to  the  knee,  and  a 
cloth  is  rolled  round  the  hips.  The  crown  is  of  heron-feathers, 
and  the  sandals  symbolize  the  foam  of  water.  The  shield 
is  inset  with  water-flowers  or  rushes,  and  the  god  carries  a 
white  rush  staff. 


STATUARY  AND  VASES 

As  has  been  said,  the  vases  in  the  Uhde  collection  and  in 
the  Anthropological  Museum  at  Berlin  show  the  Tlaloc  face, 
probably  in  its  earlier  state  of  development.  In  both  of 
these  a serpentine  motif  arches  over  the  eyes  and  meets  in  a 
knot  or  twist  which  forms  the  nose,  while  a separate  serpent 
16 


242  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


pattern  forms  the  mouth  in  a moustache-like  manner,  the 
long  teeth  jutting  out  from  underneath  it.  Another  found 
in  the  Calle  de  las  Escalerillas,  Mexico  City,  is  identical  with 
these  last.  A stone  slab  found  at  Cerro  de  Zapotitlan,  near 
Castillo  de  Teayo,  and  resembling  a tombstone,  shows  the 
face  of  Tlaloc  very  clearly,  the  characteristic  feather  crown 
and  the  long  tusk-like  teeth  being  especially  noticeable. 
Another  stone  figure  found  at  Teayo  is  fully  illustrative  of 
the  god’s  facial  characteristics,  but  the  two  serpents  twining 
together  to  form  the  nose  spring  upwards  and,  after  traversing 
the  position  of  the  eyebrow,  end  with  their  tails  above  this 
in  a flourish.  The  back-fan  is  well  represented  in  this  figure, 
which  has  also  a mantle  and  a waist-belt.  In  a relief  found 
at  Teayo  in  which  Tlaloc  is  represented  along  with  Xochi- 
quetzal,  wc  see  once  more  the  manner  in  which  the  serpentine 
mot  ifs  around  the  mouth  and  eyes  have  become  unified  through 
the  exigencies  of  representation  in  profile.  The  usual  insignia 
are  represented  here,  such  as  the  necklace,  the  back-fan,  and 
the  short  tunic  ; but  certain  knots  or  bows  on  the  dress  lead 
me  to  think  that  what  have  been  commonly  taken  for 
sprinklings  of  indiarubber  gum  (ulli)  may  be  small  ornamental 
knots  of  some  textile  material.  Vases  found  at  Tlaxcallan 
and  in  the  Mixtec  country  show  precisely  the  same  charac- 
teristics. 

MYTHS 

The  myth  explanatory  of  the  Tlaloque  is  found  in  the 
Historia  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas  (c.  ii),1  which  tells 
how  the  rain-gods  lived  in  four  chambers  surrounding  a 
great  court  in  which  stood  four  immense  water-casks.  In 
one  of  these  good  water  was  stored,  which  descended  upon 
the  grain  when  it  was  in  process  of  growth.  Bad  water  stood 
in  the  next,  which  produced  fungus  growth,  causing  the 
maize  to  turn  black.  When  rain  and  frost  came  together  it 
was  thought  that  the  third  cask  had  been  drawn  upon,  and 
the  fourth  was  filled  with  such  rain  as  was  followed  by  no 

1 See  digest  of  the  passage  in  chapter  on  Cosmogony,  p.  49. 


HYMN  TO  TLALOC 


243 


growth,  or  by  such  growth  as  grew  sere  and  withered.  Tlaloc, 
we  learn  from  this  account,  had  created  for  the  purposes  of 
rain-making  a number  of  dwarfs  who  made  their  homes  in 
the  four  chambers  of  his  house,  and  who  carried  sticks  in 
their  hands,  and  jars  into  which  they  drew  water  from  the 
great  casks.  When  Tlaloc  commanded  them  to  water  a 
certain  tract  of  country  they  poured  water  from  the  jars  they 
held,  and  the  lightning-flash  was  supposed  to  proceed  from 
the  cracking  or  breaking  of  their  vessels.  This  myth  is 
represented  in  the  Codex  Borgia,  p.  27,  as  already  described. 

Another  piece  of  mythic  information  is  found  in  the  Song 
of  the  Rain-god,  the  fourth  canticle  in  Sahagun’s  collection, 
which  has  been  translated  as  follows  : 

I 

Oh,  Mexico  has  done  service  with  the  gods, 

The  paper  flags  fly  over  the  four  comers  of  the  heavens, 

It  is  no  more  a time  of  mourning. 

II 

Oh,  Tlaloc  (the  Rain-god)  has  been  created 

(I.e.  my  statue  has  been  set  on  the  temple). 

My  God  has  become  a dark  red  colour  from  the  blood  of  the  sacrifices. 

The  whole  day  they  took,  with  the  making  of  rain  in  the  temple  court. 

III 

O my  Chieftain,  the  maize-prince. 

In  truth  it  is  your  produce  ; 

You  created  it  first ; 

And  yet  they  only  do  insult  to  you. 

They  can  have  nothing  against  you  ; 

Distribute  thou  no  offering. 


IV 

But  they  abuse  me  (abstain  from  sacrifice), 
I am  therefore  not  satisfied, 

My  father,  my  old  priest. 

The  Jaguar-serpent. 


V 

Out  of  the  Tlalocan  the  turquoise  house  (the  blue  house) 
Came  thy  father,  Acatonal. 


214  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


VI 

O go,  go  down  on  the  mountain  Poyauhtlan 

With  the  mist  rattle- board  ; 

Water  will  be  sent  from  Tlalocan, 

The  country  of  the  rain-gods. 

VII 

0 my  elder  brother  Toxcuecuex  ! 

1 will  go  ; it  is  enough  to  make  him  weep. 

VIII 

0 send  me  to  the  place  that  no  one  knows. 

Down  came  his  word  ; 

1 spoke  to  him,  Tetzauhpilli, 

I will  go  ; that  is  enough  to  make  him  weep. 

IX 

After  four  years  he  will  be  placed  over  us. 

Of  thee  it  was  said, 

Tho  place  of  the  fallen. 

The  quetzal  feather-house,  the  place  of  plenty, 

And  yet  he  becomes  distributer  for  the  Kingdom. 

It  would  be  rash  to  attempt  any  precise  elucidation  of  this 
obscure  song.  Briefly  and  doubtfully,  I may  say,  it  seems 
to  me  that  its  tendency  is  as  follows  : The  song  evidently 
refers  to  one  of  the  festivals  of  the  Rain-god,  probably  the 
atemoztli,  when  much  time  was  occupied  in  “ rain-making  ” 
ceremonies,  as  the  canticle  indicates.  The  pious  maker  of 
the  song  had  evidently  in  mind  the  myth  which  told  how 
Tlaloc  stole  the  maize  from  Quetzalcoatl,  an  assertion  to 
which  he  objects  (verse  iii),  and  advises  the  god  to  withhold 
his  produce.  This  myth,  which  is  given  in  the  Anales  de 
Quauhtitlan  ( Codex  Chimalpopoca),  the  second  or  historical 
portion,  states  that  Quetzalcoatl  discovered  maize  in  the 
mountain  Tonacatepetl.  To  do  so,  he  took  the  form  of  a 
black  ant  and  was  led  to  the  spot  by  a red  ant.  As  he  was 
unable  to  lift  the  mountain,  it  was  split  open  by  the  magical 
prowess  of  Xolotl  in  his  phase  of  Nanahuatl  and  the  maize 
was  secured  by  Quetzalcoatl,  but  was  stolen  from  him  by 
Tlaloc.  In  verse  iv  of  the  song  under  discussion  Tlaloc  replies 
in  agreement  with  his  servant,  whom  it  is,  perhaps,  that  he 


INTERPRETATION  OF  HYMN  TO  TLALOC  245 


addresses  as  Jaguar-serpent,  Jaguar  ( Balam ),  being  a common 
designation  of  priests  among  the  Maya-Quiche.1  Or  it  may 
have  reference  to  the  god  himself,  one  of  whose  names  is 
“ Nine  Jaguar.” 

The  god  would  seem  to  refer  to  some  unknown  myth 
relating  to  his  own  parentage  in  verse  v.  The  name  Acatonal 
(“  Reed  of  the  Sun”)  given  to  his  father  seems  to  have  a 
calendric  significance.  The  ceremony  of  the  mist  rattle- 
board,  the  rattling  of  which  was  supposed  to  bring  rain  by 
sympathetic  magic,  was  one  of  the  ceremonies  connected  with 
rain-making  at  more  than  one  of  the  festivals  of  the  Tlaloque. 
Poyauhtlan  (“  Place  of  Mugwort  ”)  is  a district  of  Tlalocan, 
as  well  as  the  name  of  his  temple,  and  Toxcuecuex  is  Uitz- 
ilopochtli.  The  last  verse  seems  to  allude  to  the  myth 
mentioned  in  the  interpretation  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A, 
where  it  is  stated  that,  as  no  rain  had  fallen  for  a period  of 
four  years,  Quetzalcoatl  began  to  make  sacrifices  to  obtain 
it,  and,  the  worshipper  or  priest  hints,  will  receive  the  con- 
sequent honour. 

According  to  Boturini.  quoting  Gemelli  Carreri  (tom.  6, 
p.  83),  Tlaloc  was  the  deity  who  at  the  behest  of  Tezcatlipoca 
raised  the  earth  out  of  the  waters  of  the  universal  flood,  and 
who  counsels  men  by  his  divine  messages  written  in  the 
lightning  and  the  thunderbolt  to  live  wisely  and  morally. 
Like  most  of  the  theories  of  this  writer,  this  is  pure  allegory. 
Following  the  analogy  of  the  calendar  stone,  we  seem  to  see 
Tlaloc  as  the  sun  during  the  period  of  Naui  Quiauitl,  or  “ Four 
Rain,”  which  ended  in  a universal  conflagration.  The 
interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A alludes  to  Tlaloc  as 
feminine,  speaks  of  him  as  “ goddess  of  water,”  and  explains 
Tlaloque  as  signifying  “ fine  weather.”  Farther  on  he 
states  that  “ on  the  21st  of  December  they  celebrated  the 
festival  of  this  god  through  whose  instrumentality  they  say 
the  earth  became  again  visible  after  it  had  been  covered  with 
the  waters  of  the  deluge  ; they  therefore  kept  his  festival 
during  the  twenty  following  signs,  in  which  they  performed 
sacrifices  to  him.” 

1 See  Spence,  The  Popol  Vuh.  London,  1908. 


246  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


The  abode  of  Tlaloc  was  in  Tlalocan,  the  heights  on  the  road 
from  Texcuco  to  Huetzotzinca  and  Tlaxcallan,  a high  and 
shady  place.1  This  locality  remained  verdant  and  moist 
because  of  its  proximity  to  the  snowy  peaks  above  it  even 
when  the  plains  beneath  languished  in  drought  under  merci- 
less sunshine,  and  it  seems  natural  that  it  should  have 
appealed  to  the  ancient  Mexicans  as  a fitting  abode  for  the 
god  of  rain.  Of  Tlalocan  in  its  more  mythical  sense,  Sahagun 
(c.  ii,  Appendix  to  bk.  iii)  says  that  there  was  abundance  of 
all  refreshments,  green  maize,  calabashes,  and  other  vegetables 
and  fruits.  Here  dwelt  the  Tlaloque,  who  resembled  the 
priests  who  ministered  to  their  idols  in  that  they  wore  their 
hair  long.  The  folk  who  went  to  that  paradise  were  those 
who  had  been  killed  by  lightning,  the  leprous,  gouty,  and 
dropsical — any  such,  in  fact,  who  had  died  from  a “ watery  ” 
complaint.  In  Tlalocan  they  enjoyed  a perpetual  summer. 

FESTIVALS 

Quaitl  eloa. — The  first  annual  festival  to  the  Tlaloque  was 
the  quaitl  eloa , of  which  Sahagun  says  : “ In  the  first  days  of 
the  first  month  of  the  year,  which  month  was  called  in  some 
parts  of  Mexico  quavitleloa,  but  generally  atlacahualco,  and 
begins  on  the  second  of  our  February,  a great  feast  was  made 
in  honour  of  the  Tlalocs,  gods  of  rain  and  water.  For  this 
occasion  many  children  at  the  breast  were  purchased  from 
their  mothers  ; those  being  chosen  that  had  two  whorls  in 
their  hair,  and  that  had  been  born  under  a good  sign  ; it 
being  said  that  such  were  the  most  agreeable  sacrifices  to 
the  storm-gods,  and  most  likely  to  induce  them  to  send  rain 
in  due  season.  Some  of  these  infants  were  butchered  for 
this  divine  holiday  on  certain  mountains,  and  some  were 
drowned  in  the  Lake  of  Mexico.  With  the  beginning  of  the 
festival,  in  every  house,  from  the  hut  to  the  palace,  certain 
poles  were  set  up,  and  to  these  were  attached  strips  of  the 

1 Sahagun  (bk.  x,  c.  xxviii,  § 10)  states  that  Tlalocan  was  in  the  Olmec  or 
Mixtec  country  ; but  Camargo  (Hist,  de  Tlaxcallan,  Nouvelles  annales  des 
Voyage ft,  1843,  tom.  99,  pp.  135-137)  is  a better  authority  on  this  particular 
subject. 


247 


FESTIVAL  OF  THE  TLALOQUE 

paper  of  the  country,  daubed  over  with  indiarubber  gum, 
these  strips  being  called  amateteuitl ; this  was  considered  an 
honour  to  the  water-gods.  And  the  first  place  where  children 
were  killed  was  Quauhtepetl,1  a high  mountain  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Tlatelulco  ; all  infants,  boys  or  girls,  sacrificed 
there  were  called  by  the  name  of  the  place,  Quauhtepetl,  and 
were  decorated  with  strips  of  paper,  dyed  red.  The  second 
place  where  children  were  killed  was  Yoaltecatl,2 *  a high 
mountain  near  Guadalupe.  The  victims  were  decorated 
with  pieces  of  black  paper  with  red  lines  on  it,  and  were  named 
after  the  place,  Yoaltecatl.  The  third  death-halt  was  made 
at  Tepetzingo,  a well-known  hillock  that  rose  up  from  the 
waters  of  the  lake  opposite  Tlatelulco  ; there  they  killed  a 
little  girl,  decking  her  with  blue  paper,  and  calling  her 
Quezalxocli ,s  for  so  was  this  hillock  called  by  another  name. 
Poiauhtla,4  on  the  boundary  of  Tlascala,  was  the  fourth  hill 
of  sacrifice.  Here  they  killed  children,  named  as  usual  after 
the  locality,  and  decorated  with  paper,  on  which  were  lines 
of  indiarubber  oil.  The  fifth  place  of  sacrifice  was  the  whirl- 
pool or  sink  of  the  Lake  of  Mexico,  Pantitlan.6  Those 
drowmed  here  were  called  Epcoatl,6  and  their  adornment 
epuepaniuhqui.'’  The  sixth  hill  of  death  was  Cocotl,8  near 
Chalcoatenco  ; the  infant  victims  were  named  after  it  and 
decorated  with  strips  of  paper,  of  which  half  the  number 
were  red  and  half  a tawny  colour.  The  mount  Yiauhqueme,9 
near  Atlacuioaia,  was  the  seventh  station  ; the  victims  being 
named  after  the  place  and  adorned  with  a paper  of  tawny 
colour. 

“ When  the  procession  reached  the  temple  near  Tepetzinco, 
on  the  east,  called  Tozoacab,  the  priests  rested  there  all 
night,  watching  and  singing  songs,  so  that  the  children  could 
not  sleep.  In  the  morning  the  march  vras  again  resumed  ; 
if  the  children  wept  copiously  those  around  them  were  very 
glad,  saying  it  was  a sign  that  much  rain  would  fall ; while 

1 Wood-mountain.  7 Place  of  Might. 

* Flower-feather.  4 Place  of  Darkness. 

6 Beside  the  stalle  (or  banner).  6 Pearl-serpent. 

7 Rows  of  pearls.  8 Servant.  9 Covered  with  mugwort. 


248  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


if  they  met  any  dropsical  person  on  the  road,  it  was  taken  for 
a bad  omen  and  something  that  would  hinder  the  rain.  If 
any  of  the  temple  ministers,  or  of  the  others  called  quaquavitli, 
or  of  the  old  men,  broke  off  from  the  procession  or  turned 
back  to  their  houses  before  they  came  to  the  place  where  the 
sacrifice  was  done,  they  were  held  infamous  and  unworthy 
of  any  public  office ; thenceforward  they  were  called 
mocauhque,  that  is  to  say,  ‘ deserters.’  ” 1 

Tozozontli. — The  second  festival  to  Tlaloc  was  tozozontli, 
of  which  Sahagun  says  : 

“ The  third  month  was  designated  tozozontli,  the  first  day 
of  it  being  consecrated  to  the  festival  of  the  god  Tlaloc,  who 
is  the  divinity  of  rain.  Many  children  were  slain  on  the 
mountains  and  offered  in  sacrifice  to  this  god  and  his  col- 
leagues, in  order  to  obtain  water.  The  firstfruits  of  the 
flowers  of  the  year  were  offered  in  the  temple  called  Yopico, 
no  one  daring  to  smell  a flower  until  this  offering  had  been 
made.  The  gardeners,  who  were  designated  xochimanque, 
held  a festival  in  honour  of  their  goddess  called  Coatlicue,  also 
known  as  Coatlan  tonan. 

“ It  was  likewise  during  this  month  that  those  who  had 
been  wearing  the  skins  of  the  dead  since  the  month  previous, 
now  stripped  them  off  and  threw  them  into  the  basin  of  the 
temple  styled  Yopico.  This  was  done  in  procession  and  with 
great  ceremony.  They  smelt  like  rotten  dogs  ; and  after 
disrobing  they  performed  devotional  ablutions. 

“ Sick  people  made  vows  to  take  part  in  this  procession  in 
the  hope  of  being  cured  of  their  infirmities,  and  we  are  assured 
that  many  of  them  were  thus  restored. 

“ The  masters  of  the  captives  and  the  people  of  their  houses 
performed  penance  for  twenty  days,  neither  bathing  nor 
washing  until  the  skins  of  their  victims  had  been  carried  to 
the  basin  of  the  temple  above  mentioned,  and  alleging  their 
penance  was  in  honour  of  their  captives. 

“ The  period  of  penance  being  over,  they  bathed  and 
washed,  and  invited  their  neighbours  and  friends  to  banquets, 
performing  elaborate  ceremonies  with  the  bones  of  their  dead 

1 Bk.  ii,  c.  xx. 


THE  ETZALQUALIZTLI  FESTIVAL 


249 


slaves.  These  twenty  days  until  the  following  month  were 
entirely  spent  in  singing  in  the  buildings  called  cuicacalli, 
everyone  being  always  seated,  without  dancing,  and  inces- 
santly chanting  the  praises  of  their  deities.  Other  rites  were 
performed,  an  account  of  which  will  be  given  in  the  chapter 
dealing  with  them.”  1 

Etzalqualiztli. — The  third  festival  to  the  Tlaloque  generally 
was  the  etzalqualiztli.  Concerning  this  feast  Sahagun 
relates  : 

“ On  the  first  day  of  this  month  a festival  was 
held  in  honour  of  the  gods  of  rain.  The  priests  of  these 
divinities  fasted  for  four  days  prior  to  the  festival,  these 
days  consequently  being  the  last  four  of  the  previous 
month.  On  the  occasion  of  these  celebrations  the  atten- 
dant satellites  of  the  idols  repaired  to  Citlaltepec  to 
pull  the  rushes  which  grow  very  high  and  very  beautifully 
in  a pond  called  Temilco.  From  thence  they  carried  them 
to  Mexico,  to  decorate  the  temples.  No  one  was  to  be  seen 
on  the  road  which  they  traversed  ; everyone  took  care  to 
hide  in  case  they  should  meet  them.  But  if,  unfortunately, 
the  priests  encountered  anyone  on  the  road,  they  stripped 
him  of  everything,  leaving  him  naked  as  a worm,  and  should 
he  dare  to  defend  himself,  he  was  maltreated  and  left  for 
dead  upon  the  highway.  Even  had  he  carried  the  treasure 
of  Moteuhyoma  and  been  robbed  of  it,  it  is  quite  certain  that 
no  punishment  would  have  fallen  upon  them,  for,  in  their 
capacity  is  priests  of  the  idols,  they  were  at  liberty  to  do 
such  things  and  worse  without  fear  of  consequences. 

“ On  the  day  of  the  festival  of  etzalqualiztli,  everyone 
prepared  cakes  or  a broth  called  etzalli,  which  was  considered 
as  a delicacy  among  them,  everybody  partaking  of  them  at 
home,  and  sharing  the  repast  with  visitors.  A thousand 
follies  were  perpetrated  on  that  day. 

“ On  the  occasion  of  this  festival  those  priests  of  the  idols 
who  had  committed  faults  in  the  exercise  of  their  functions 
were  terribly  punished  on  the  waters  of  the  lake.  They 
were  maltreated  to  the  point  of  being  left  for  dead  on  the 

1 Bk.  ii,  c.  iii. 


250  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


banks  of  the  lake,  whither  their  parents  or  relatives  repaired 
to  take  them  home  almost  lifeless. 

“ Death  was  also  inflicted  on  a great  number  of  captives  and 
slaves  dressed  in  the  trappings  of  the  god  Tlaloc,  in  whose 
temples  they  were  slain  in  their  honour  ; the  hearts  of  those 
unfortunates  were  then  thrown  into  the  gaping  hole  in  the 
middle  of  the  lake,  which  was  at  that  time  quite  visible.1 2 3 
Many  other  rites  were  performed  as  well.”  ! 

Tepeilhuitl. — The  fourth  festival  to  the  gods  of  the  water- 
giving mountains  was  the  tepeilhuitl.  Sahagun  says  of  this  : 

“ During  this  month  festivals  were  held  in  honour  of  the 
high  mountains  which  were  the  point  of  departure  of  the 
clouds,  and  which  are  very  numerous  in  this  land  of  New 
Spain.  To  each  of  these  a statue  in  human  form  was  erected 
out  of  a paste  called  tzoalli,  and  offerings  were  made  to  these 
idols  in  honour  of  these  mountains. 

“ Serpents  were  also  made  in  their  honour  out  of  wood  or 
the  roots  of  trees,  which  were  so  carved  as  to  terminate  in 
an  adder’s  head.  Long  pieces  of  wood  of  the  size  of  a fist 
were  also  made,  which  were  called  ecatotontin  (“  little  winds  ”). 
They  were  smoothed  on  the  surface  with  a lump  of  tzoalli , 
and  were  baptized  as  mountains,  being  placed  upon  men’s 
heads. 

“ Images  were  also  made  in  memory  of  people  who  had 
been  drowned,  or  of  those  who  had  died  such  a death  as  en- 
titled their  bodies  to  be  buried  instead  of  being  burnt. 

“ Having  placed  the  statues  just  described  upon  the  altars 
with  great  ceremony,  tamalli  and  many  other  foods  were 
offered  to  them  ; hymns  were  chanted,  and  wine  drunk  in 
their  honour. 

“ The  day  of  the  mountain  festival  having  come  round, 
four  women  and  a man  were  slain.  One  of  the  women  was 
called  Tepexoch,  the  second  Matlalque,  the  third  Xochitecatl, 
the  fourth  Mayauel ; the  man  bore  the  name  of  Milnauatl.5 
These  women,  as  well  as  the  man,  were  decked  with  paper 

1 The  Pantitlan  = “ Near  the  Stake.” 

2 Bk.  ii,  c.  vi. 

3 All  of  the  deities  known  by  these  names  were  octli-gods. 


THE  ATEMOZTLI  FESTIVAL 


251 


anointed  with  iilli  gum,  and  certain  females,  richly  dressed, 
carried  them  in  litters  upon  their  shoulders  to  the  place 
where  they  were  to  be  killed. 

“ After  they  were  slain  and  their  hearts  torn  out,  they 
were  taken  slowly  away,  being  dragged  down  the  temple 
stairs  to  the  bottom,  where  their  heads  were  cut  off  and 
placed  upon  wooden  pikes,  while  their  bodies  were  taken  to 
the  calpulli  1 and  there  divided  for  eating.  The  papers  with 
which  the  statues  were  decorated  were  hung  up  in  the  temples, 
after  the  statues  had  been  broken  up  for  food.”  ! 

Atemoztli. — On  the  sixteenth  month,  atemoztli,  the  people 
celebrated  the  Rain-god’s  festival  in  right  good  earnest. 
Says  Sahagun  1 : 

“ The  sixteenth  month  was  called  atemoztli,  that  is  to  say 
the  rain  month,  when  the  thunder  and  heavy  rains  began  to 
display  themselves.  The  people  said,  ‘ Now  the  Tlaloque 
come.’ 

“ At  this  time  the  priests  began  to  pray  earnestly  for  rain, 
doing  penance  the  while.  Taking  their  censers  of  serpent- 
headed brass,  they  threw  the  incense  called  yiauhtli,  they 
rang  little  bells  attached  to  the  censer,  and  censed  all  the 
statues  of  the  gods  and  all  the  quarters  of  the  town.  As  on 
another  occasion,  they  made  images  of  the  mountains  during 
the  time  they  fasted,  and  prepared  the  paper  usually  used 
in  these  ceremonies.  During  five  days  when  they  bathed 
themselves  they  permitted  no  water  to  fall  upon  the  head 
or  to  go  above  the  neck.  They  also  abstained  from  women. 
The  night  which  preceded  the  atemoztli,  which  they  cele- 
brated on  the  twentieth  day  of  the  month,  they  occupied  in 
cutting  the  paper,  which  they  gummed  with  ulli,  and  which 
was  then  called  teteuitl.  These  they  attached  to  long  poles, 
which  they  planted  in  the  courts  of  the  houses,  where  they 
remained  during  the  day  of  the  feast.  The  paste  images 
they  made  represented  the  mountains  surrounding  the  valley 
of  Anahuac.  These  were  placed  in  the  oratory  of  the  house, 
where  they  were  offered  food,  and  people  sat  in  front  of  them, 
serving  them  in  tiny  vessels  full  of  food,  little  pots  and 
1 Temple  precinct.  2 Bk.  i,  c.  xiii.  2 Bk.  ii,  c.  xxxv. 


252  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


vessels  of  cocoa  and  food,  which  were  offered  four  times  a 
night.  Nor  was  an  offering  of  pulque  forgotten.  They  sang 
all  night  before  these  images,  and  played  on  the  flute.  At 
daybreak  the  priests  asked  the  people  of  the  house  for  a 
tzotzo  paztli,  or  weaver’s  bodkin,  with  which  they  opened  the 
stomachs  of  the  images.  They  also  beheaded  them  and  drew 
out  their  hearts,  which  they  handed  to  the  master  of  the  house 
in  a green  porringer.  They  then  stripped  them  of  the  paper 
with  which  they  were  decked,  which  they  burned  in  the  court 
of  the  house  along  with  the  viands  offered  to  the  images.”  1 

Camargo,  who  had  witnessed  the  festivals  to  Tlaloc  thirty 
years  before  writing  his  book,  states  that 8 when  the  rain 
failed  and  the  land  was  parched  with  drought,  great  pro- 
cessions were  made  in  which  a number  of  the  hairless  edible 
dogs  of  the  country  were  carried  on  decorated  litters  to  a 
place  of  sacrifice  and  there  killed  and  their  hearts  cut  out, 
after  which  the  bodies  were  eaten  with  much  festivity.  This, 
of  course,  related  to  a period  subsequent  to  the  Conquest, 
when  human  sacrifice  was  forbidden.  He  further  states 
that  old  Aztec  priests  had  informed  him  that  the  hearts  of 
the  human  beings  sacrificed  to  Tlaloc  were  first  held  up  to 
the  sun,  then  to  the  remaining  three  cardinal  points,  after 
which  they  were  burned.  Tlaloc  was  held  in  high  respect, 
and  priests  alone  had  the  right  to  enter  his  temple.  Whoever 
dared  to  blaspheme  against  him  was  supposed  to  die  suddenly 
by  a thunderbolt,  no  matter  how  clear  the  sky  may  have 
been.  The  priests,  he  adds,  took  good  care  to  retard  his 
festivals  until  they  saw  indication  of  coming  rain. 

TEMPLES  AND  PLACES  OF  WORSHIP 

The  earliest  recorded  place  of  worship  of  this  deity  is  that 
spoken  of  by  Clavigero  3 in  one  of  the  few  enlightening  pas- 
sages which  he  permits  himself,  as  follows  : 

1 Ixtlilxochitl,  Relaciones,  p.  41,  states  that  girls  were  sacrificed  by  the 
Toltecs  to  Tlaloc  and  buried. 

2 Hist,  de  Tlaxcallan,  in  Temaux-Compan’s  Nouvelles  annales  de  Voyages, 
1843,  tom.  99,  pp.  133,  135-7. 

3 Vol.  i,  bk.  vi,  p.  251  (English  translation).  See  also  Torqueinada,  bk.  vi, 
c.  xxiii ; Veytia,  vol.  i,  p.  27  ; Velasquez  de  Leon,  Nevadade  Toluca,  13d.  Inst. 
Nac.  Oeog.  Eslad.  Mex.,  1850. 


TEMPLE  OF  TLALOC 


253 


“The  native  historians  relate,  that  the  Acolhuas  having 
arrived  in  that  country  in  the  time  of  Xolotl,  the  first  Chichi- 
mecan  king,  found  at  the  top  of  the  mountain  of  Tlaloc, 
an  image  of  that  god,  made  of  a white  and  very  light  stone, 
in  the  shape  of  a man  sitting  upon  a square  stone,  with  a 
vessel  before  him,  in  which  was  some  elastic  gum,  and  a 
variety  of  seeds.  This  was  their  yearly  offering  by  way  of 
rendering  up  their  thanks,  after  having  had  a favourable 
harvest.  That  image  was  reckoned  the  oldest  in  the  country  ; 
for  it  had  been  placed  upon  that  hill  by  the  ancient  Toltecas 
and  remained  till  the  end  of  the  XVth  or  beginning  of  the 
XVIth  century,  when  Nezahualpilli,  King  of  Acollhuacan, 
in  order  to  gain  the  favour  of  his  subjects,  carried  it  away 
and  placed  another  in  its  stead,  of  a very  hard,  black  stone. 
The  new  image,  however,  being  defaced  by  lightning,  and 
the  priests  declaring  it  to  be  a punishment  from  heaven, 
the  ancient  statue  was  restored,  and  there  continued  to  be 
preserved  and  worshipped,  until  the  promulgation  of  the 
gospel,  when  it  was  thrown  down  and  broken  by  order  of 
the  first  Bishop  of  Mexico.” 

The  principal  seat  of  the  worship  of  Tlaloc  was  the  great 
temple  of  Uitzilopochtli  at  Mexico,  which  is  fully  described 
in  the  section  which  deals  with  that  god. 

Sahagun  speaks  (Appendix  to  bk.  ii)  of  a temple  within  the 
sacred  precinct  of  Mexico  which  was  especially  dedicated 
to  the  Tlaloque.  This  was  the  epcoatl  (“pearl  serpent”), 
so  called,  perhaps,  from  the  circumstance  that  the  victims 
immolated  therein  were  known  by  the  same  name.  It  was 
in  this  place  that  the  priests  fasted  and  did  penance  for 
forty  days  before  the  feast  in  honour  of  their  gods.  The 
Mexico  Calmecac  was  a school  or  junior  monastery,  where 
those  who  were  destined  to  become  priests  of  the  god 
received  their  training.  At  the  acatla  yiacapan  uei 
calpulli  (“  chief  flowery  hall  ”)  the  slaves  intended  for 
sacrifice  to  the  god  were  assembled,  and  here  their  bodies 
were  prepared  for  the  horrid  banquet  which  concluded  his 
festival. 


254  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 

PRIESTHOOD 


The  Tlaloc  Tlamacasque,  the  second  in  rank  in  the  Mexican 
priesthood,  stood  at  the  head  of  the  ministers  of  the  god. 
The  acolnauacatl  acolmiztli  (“  he  of  the  puma  shoulder”  or 
“ dress  ”)  made  all  arrangements  for  the  festivals  of  the 
god,  and  kept  the  vestments  worn  by  the  king  on  these 
occasions.  It  is  also  clear  from  many  passages  that  the 
priesthood  of  Tlaloc  composed  a large  and  considerable 
body. 

PRAYERS 

Sahagun  1 gives  at  great  length  a most  striking  prayer  to 
Tlaloc  made  in  time  of  drought  by  the  priests  in  hope  of  rain. 
It  asks  for  compassion  from  the  Tlaloque,  who,  along  with 
their  sister,  Chalchiuhtlicue,  have  withdrawn  their  faces 
from  mankind.  It  describes  the  wretchedness  of  the  people, 
tells  how  they  perish  of  thirst,  and  draws  a harrowing  picture 
of  the  sufferings  of  the  children.  It  requests  Tlaloc  to  assist 
the  god  of  earth  with  rain,  so  that  the  vegetables  and  plants 
may  grow  and  not  perish.  It  also  asks  that  the  rain  may  be 
of  the  kind  which  assists  growth,  and  that  it  be  not  accom- 
panied by  hail  or  lightning,  the  usual  manifestation  of  the 
wrath  of  the  Tlaloque.  “ You  who  are  gods  of  the  water, 
who  dwell  at  the  east,  west,  north,  and  south  of  the  world, 
who  inhabit  the  subterranean  places,  the  air,  the  mountains 
and  the  profound  caverns,  hasten  to  the  consolation  of  man.” 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

There  is  less  doubt  concerning  the  character  of  Tlaloc 
than  that  of  any  other  Mexican  deity.  The  representations 
of  him  in  the  manuscripts,  the  prayers  offered  up  to  him,  the 
myths  which  seek  to  explain  him,  all  make  it  clear  that  he 
is  the  god  of  the  rain-cult  par  excellence,  to  whom  even 
Quetzalcoatl,  the  deified  rain-maker,  in  time  becomes  merely 
“ a sweeper  of  the  ways.”  The  etymological  derivation 
of  the  name  has  been  frequently  essayed.  Tlaloc,  says 


1 Bk.  vi,  c.  vii. 


NATURE  OF  TLALOC 


255 


Seler,  is  a noun  derived  from  the  verb  tlaloa,  “ to  hasten,” 
which  in  its  reflexive  sense  means  “ to  shoot  up,”  “ to  sprout,” 
so  that  the  name  really  conveys  the  sense  of  “ He  who  makes 
things  sprout,”  “ He  who  hastens  growth.”  He  is,  indeed, 
the  god  of  rain,  of  moisture,  who  dwells  on  the  mountain 
peaks,  and  manifests  himself  in  the  lightning  and  the  thunder, 
both  of  which  are  symbolized  in  the  serpentine  folds  of  his 
countenance  and  in  its  darksome  hues.  His  progeny  are 
the  Tlaloque,  who  dwell  on  every  mountain  top,  dwarfish 
servants  who  pour  forth  the  rain  out  of  the  great  jars  which 
stand  in  his  courtyard.  “ When  they  beat  these  with  the 
sticks  they  carry,  it  thunders,  and  when  it  lightens  a piece 
of  the  jug  falls.  ”* 

The  name  Tlaloc  was  specially  given  by  the  Mexicans  to 
a mountain  to  the  east  of  Tezcuco,  near  the  pass  which 
led  to  Huetzotzinco,  and  here  it  was  that  his  most  ancient 
idol  was  found  by  the  immigrant  tribes.  The  mountains 
Popocatapetl  and  Teocuinaui  were  also  especially  sacred  to 
him.  He  possessed,  as  will  have  been  observed,  both  bene- 
ficent and  terrible  aspects,  and  was  the  striker,  the  slayer, 
as  well  as  the  giver  of  bounteous  food-supplies.  That  his 
cult  was  an  ancient  one  in  Mexico  is  proved  by  the  numerous 
finds  of  his  images  among  remains  of  pre- Aztec  date  at 
Teotihuacan,  at  Teotitlan  in  the  Huaxtec  country,  at  Quien- 
gola  in  the  Zapotec  district,  and  at  Quen  Santo  in  Guatemala. 

Tlaloc  denotes  the  four  quarters  from  which  the  rain 
comes,  as  his  symbolism  abundantly  shows,  and  the  learned 
priests  of  Mexico  undoubtedly  regarded  him  as  the  personi- 
fication of  the  tlequiauitl,  or  fire- rain,  the  disaster  which  closed 
one  of  the  epochs  of  the  prehistoric  world.  He  is  further 
analogous  to  the  Maya  Chac  and  God  B. 

His  chief  significance  for  the  ancient  Mexicans  was  as  the 
great  god  of  the  rain-cult,  the  rain  itself,  and  the  thunder- 
storm which  brings  the  rain.  In  his  serpentine  form  we  may, 
perhaps,  see  a reminiscence  of  the  mythical  beast  of  dragon 
or  serpentine  form  known  to  many  mythologies  as  the  “ water- 
provider,”  which  must  be  slain  by  the  sun-hero  ere  the  rain- 

1 Hiatoria  de  los  Alexicanos  por  sus  Pinturaa,  c.  ii. 


256  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


flood  is  released  to  assist  the  growth  of  the  crops.  None  of 
the  myths  relating  to  him  serve  to  assist  such  a hypothesis ; 
but  certain  paintings  in  the  codices  appear  to  relate  to  some 
such  myth,  and  page  74  of  the  Maya  Dresden  Codex,  which 
relates  to  the  deluge  caused  by  the  water-sun,  shows  a great 
serpent  vomiting  water  upon  the  earth,  showing  that  in 
Central  America  the  rain  was  supposed  to  emanate  from  a 
monster  of  this  description.1 

It  is  significant  that  Tlaloc  wears  Toltec  dress,  and  from 
this  and  from  his  name  “ Nine  Jaguar  ” we  may  be  justified 
in  concluding  that  he  is  in  a sense  to  be  regarded,  like 
Quetzalcoatl,  as  the  Toltec  priest.  Balam,  the  Maya-Quiche 
word  for  jaguar,  signifies  also  “ priest,”  and  that  the  title 
was  superadded  to  the  serpentine  conception  of  him  is  shown 
by  the  expression  “ Jaguar-serpent,”  by  which  he  is  alluded 
to  in  the  hymn  quoted  above.  The  Poyauhtlan  was  not  only 
his  temple,  but  a district  of  Tlalocan,  where  he  was  supposed 
to  hold  sway.  This  I would  translate  “ Place  of  the  Mugwort,” 
or  “ Absinthe,”  and  it  is  clear  that  he,  as  well  as  Chalchi- 
huitlicue,  his  spouse,  has  some  mysterious  connexion  with 
this  plant,  which  has  been  shown  by  Dr.  Rendel  Harris  to 
have  been  the  especial  medicine-plant  of  the  Greek  Artemis. 
It  is  strange,  too,  to  find  both  the  god  and  his  victims,  like 
the  dragon-gods  of  China,  connected  with  the  pearl. 

Tlaloc  is  also  god  of  the  four  quarters  or  four  “ weathers.” 
The  seventh  day-sign,  mazatl  (“deer”),  which  he  takes,  is 
appropriate,  as  the  deer  symbolizes  the  quest  for  water  and 
vegetation.  His  association  with  the  dog,  the  lightning- 
beast,  is  also  significant.  Indeed  in  Codex  Bologna  Tlaloc 
is  frequently  symbolized  by  the  lightning-flash  alone. 


CIIALCHIHUITLICUE  = “ SHE  OF  THE  JEWELLED 

ROBE  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico  (worshipped  at  Tlaxcallan  as  Matlalcueye, 
“ She  of  the  Blue  Ilobe  ”). 

1 Forstemann,  Die  M aya-Handschrift-zu  Dresden,  Leipzig,  1880.  Seoond 
edition,  1892. 


INSIGNIA  OF  CHALCHIHUITLICUE 


257 


Minor  Names  : 

Acuecueyotl  = “ Water  which  makes  Waves.” 

Apofonallotl  = “ Foam  of  the  Water.” 

Ahuic  = “ Motion  of  Water.” 

Aiauh  = “ Fog.” 

Atlacamani  = “ Storm.” 

Xixiquipilihui  = “ Rising  and  Falling  of  the  Waves  ” (Clavigero). 
Macuilxochiquetzalli  = “ Five  times  Flower- feather  ” (Boturini). 
Calendar  Places  : 

Ruler  of  the  fifth  day  ( coatl ). 

Ruler  of  the  fifth  week  (ce  acatl). 

Lord  of  the  sixth  night. 

Compass  Direction  : West. 

Festivals  : Atlcahualco  ; ce  all  (movable  feast). 

Relationship  : Wife  of  Tlaloc,  sister  of  the  Tlaloque  ; mother  of 
the  Centzon  Mimixcoa. 

Symbol  : The  chalchihuiil  stone. 


ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

General. — In  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  14)  she  is  depicted  wearing 
a blue,  stepped  nose-ornament  and  a serpent  helmet-mask. 
In  the  Codex  Fejerv dry -Mayer  is  seen  a jaguar’s  ear  behind 
the  serpent’s  eye  in  more  than  one  representation  of  her 
helmet-mask.  In  Codex  Borgia  she  wears  a large  golden  disk 
(teocuitla-comalli)  suspended  by  a jewelled  band.  Her  robe 
has  a broad  hem,  in  which  the  colours  of  the  hieroglyph 
chalchihuiil,  green  and  red,  with  a white  fringe,  are  reproduced, 
thus  forming  a kind  of  pictograph  of  her  name.  The  same 
purpose  is  served  by  a large  blue  disk  in  the  middle  of  the 
skirt.1  In  Codex  Vaticanus  B she  holds  the  bone-dagger 
and  agave  spike  for  ceremonial  blood-letting.  She  stands  on 
foaming  water,  on  which  floats  a burnt-offering  of  firewood 
and  rubber. 

In  the  Aubin  tonalamatl  she  is  pictured  as  standing  in  a 
stream,  down  which  swirl  away  a jewel-box,  an  armed  man, 
and  a woman. 

Variations. — The  representations  of  Chalchihuitlicue  in 
the  Codex  Borgia  group,  where  she  is  dressed  in  the  snake- 

1 Codex  Borgia,  sheet  14,  and  Codex  Fejervdry- Mayer,  sheets  1 and  3. 

17 


258  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


helmet,  are  substantially  different  from  her  appearance  in 
the  Aubin  tonalamatl,  the  Codex  Borbonicus,  and  elsewhere. 

In  the  Codex  Borbonicus  (sheet  5)  the  insignia  of  the  goddess 
is  heavily  spotted,  the  significance  being  by  no  means  plain.1 
The  representation  in  the  Sahagun  MS.  (Biblioteca  del 
Palacio)  also  differs,  and  in  this  the  goddess  is  seen  holding 
a rattle  and  wearing  what  seems  to  be  an  interesting  variant 
of  the  jewel  hieroplyph. 

In  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  57)  she  is  represented  along  with  her 
spouse  Tlaloc,  the  chalchihuitl  jewel  in  the  form  of  a two- 
handed  pitcher  separating  them.  The  gods  hold  chains  of 
jewels  representing  the  four  kinds  of  maize — yellow,  blue,  red, 
and  green — and  a naked  human  being  issues  from  the  pitcher, 
symbolizing  the  growth  of  the  maize.2 

Other  interesting  variations  in  connexion  with  this-goddess 
are  those  found  in  Codex  Vaticanus  B and  Codex  Borgia 
(sheet  17),  in  both  of  which  she  is  seen  suckling  a human 
being.  In  the  former  she  wears  on  the  head  two  bunches  of 
quetzal- feathers,  usually  part  of  the  insignia  of  Xochiquetzal, 
and  she  is  only  to  be  recognized  by  the  symbol  beside  her,  a 
variant  of  the  element  chalchihuitl. 

Sahagun  describes  her  as  follows  in  the  Biblioteca  del  Palacio 
MS. : “ The  face  is  yellow,  with  a red  pattern  superimposed. 
She  wears  a collar  of  green  precious  stones,  and  a crown  of 
paper  adorned  with  a quetzal-icaXher . The  tunic  and  skirt 
are  painted  with  water  lines,  and  she  wears  shells.  Her 
sandals  represent  the  foam  of  water.  On  her  shield  is 
painted  the  emblem  of  a water  flower,  and  she  carries  the 
“ mist  rattle-staff.”  Statuettes  of  Chalchihuitlicue  are  fairly 
common.  One  found  in  the  Valley  of  Mexico  agrees  to  some 

1 Unless  the  costume  be  spotted  like  that  of  her  spouso  Tlaloc,  with  ulli 
rubber-gum,  to  represent  rain. 

* This  picture  of  Tlaloc  and  Chalchihuitlicue  is  reminiscent  of  the  Japanese 
myth  of  Susa-no-o  and  his  sister  Ama-terasu,  the  Sun-goddess,  who,  desirous 
of  progeny,  stood  one  on  either  side  of  a “ river  ” (the  Milky  Way),  dipped 
jewels  into  the  “ river,”  crushed  them  into  dust  and  “ blew  them  away  ” ; 
gods  were  born  from  the  dust  so  breathed  upon.  See  Kojiki,  translated  by 
Basil  Hill  Chamberlain,  in  supplement  to  vol.  x of  Transactions  of  the  Asiatic 
Society  of  Japan,  1882,  pp.  47-49.  The  Mexican  picture  has  probably  a 
similar  generative  significance. 


CHALCIIIHUITLICUE. 


e 

i 


CHALC'HIHUITLICUE  PIERCED  BY  TLAUIZCALPANTECUTLI. 
(Prom  Codex  Bologna,  sheet  9.) 


MYTHS  OF  CHALCHIHUITLICUE 


259 


extent  with  her  appearance  in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl,  but  not 
with  that  in  Codex  Borgia.  She  wears  the  tasselled  shawl 
and  the  chalchihuitl  emblem  adorns  her  dress.  Two  other 
stone  figures  of  her  in  the  Uhde  collection  at  Berlin  and  one 
in  the  Christy  collection  at  London  are  eloquent  of  her  in- 
signia. In  all  of  these  she  wears  the  tasselled  shawl,  and  in 
the  Christy  example  and  one  of  the  Uhde  figures  the  large 
back-bow  is  well  exemplified,  as  are  the  two  plaits  of  hair 
descending  at  the  back.  In  the  other  Uhde  specimen  the 
plates  are  shown  as  part  of  a knot  of  the  cotton  headdress, 
which  is  in  all  cases  fringed  with  balls.  In  all  three  figures 
large,  full  bands  of  some  material  descend  over  the  ear.  A 
stone  figure  of  her,  found  at  the  Castillo  de  Teayo  in  Vera 
Cruz  and  now  in  the  National  Museum  at  Mexico,  depicts 
her  with  a square  headdress,  from  which  radiate  what  are 
evidently  the  feathers  of  aquatic  birds.  She  wears  the 
V-shaped  shawl  or  tippet  and  a skirt,  on  each  side  of  which 
the  chalchihuitl  emblem  is  shown  and  which  is  fringed  with 
shells.  Teobert  Maler  reproduces  another  stone  figure  of  her 
wearing  a high  headdress  of  feathers  and  a necklace  and 
wristlets  of  chalchihuitls. 

MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  T elleriano-Remensis  states 
that  “ Chalchiuhtli,  who  presided  over  these  thirteen  days, 
saved  herself  in  the  deluge.  She  is  a woman  who  remained 
after  the  deluge.  Her  name  signifies  the  * Woman  who  wears 
a dress  adorned  with  precious  stones.’  They  here  fasted  four 
days  till  death.  They  paint  her  holding  in  one  hand  a 
spinning-wheel,  and  in  the  other  a wooden  instrument,  with 
which  they  weave  ; and  in  order  to  show  that  of  the  sons 
which  women  bring  forth  some  are  slaves  and  others  die  in 
war,  and  others  in  poverty,  they  paint  her  with  a stream  as 
if  carrying  them  away,  so  that  whether  rich  or  poor  all 
were  finally  doomed.”  The  interpreter  of  Codex  V aticanus  A 
says  that  she  is  the  same  as  the  virgin  Chimalman,  who  was 
the  mother  of  Quetzalcoatl.  The  myth  to  which  this 
passage  alludes  is  dealt  with  in  the  section  relating  to 


260  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 

Quetzalcoatl.  Sahagun  (bk.  i,  c.  ii)  calls  the  goddess  the 
sister  of  the  Tlaloque. 

FESTIVALS 

Chalchihuitlicue  was  adored  at  the  etzalqualiztli  festival  to 
the  Tlaloque  (see  Tlaloc)  and  at  the  feast  ce  atl  (“  one  week  ”), 
when,  says  Sahagun,  “ her  festival  was  celebrated  by  all  who 
in  any  way  dealt  in  water,  or  had  any  connexion  with  it, 
water-sellers,  fishers  and  the  like.  These  dressed  and 
ornamented  her  image  and  made  adorations  in  the  house 
named  calpulli.  The  great  lords  and  rich  merchants  at 
the  birth  of  one  of  their  children  paid  the  greatest  attention 
to  this  sign,  and  the  day  and  hour  at  which  the  child  was 
born.  They  at  once  inquired  of  the  astrologers  what  fortune 
the  child  might  expect  to  encounter,  and  if  the  sign  was 
propitious,  they  had  the  infant  baptized  without  delay, 
whereas  if  it  were  the  opposite  they  waited  until  the  nearest 
day  which  had  a propitious  sign.  Food  and  drink  were  dis- 
tributed freely  to  all.” 

PRIESTHOOD 

Veytia  1 states  that  King  Nauhyotl  instituted  a college  of 
priests  expressly  for  the  service  of  this  goddess.  These  were 
celibate  and  wore  long  and  ample  robes  of  a sombre  colour. 
They  went  bare-footed  in  the  sanctuary,  fasted  frequently, 
and  were  given  to  penitence  and  contemplation.  Their  high- 
priest  was  called  Achcauhili ,*  and  the  entire  cult  was  modelled 
on  that  of  Quetzalcoatl.  This  did  not  prohibit  them,  how- 
ever, from  the  sacrifice  of  human  beings. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Chalchihuitlicue  was  the  female  counterpart  of  Tlaloc,  and 
the  goddess  of  water  and  moisture.  Sahagun  (bk.  i,  c.  ii) 
says  of  her  : “ She  was  supposed  to  have  her  existence  in  the 
sea,  the  rivers  and  lakes,  and  had  power  to  take  the  lives  of 
those  who  ventured  upon  them,  and  to  raise  tempests.” 

1 Hist.  Antig.  de  Mej.,  tom.  i,  c.  xxviii.  a “ Chief  Eagle.” 


CH  ALCH IH  U IT  LICU  E. 
(From  Codex  liorgiu.  sheet  17.) 


CH  A LCHIH  U ITLICUE. 
(From  the  Sahagun  MS.) 


UIXTOCIUATL. 
(From  the  Sahagun  MS.) 


KOHMS  OF  THE  TLALOQ 
(From  tlio  Sahagun  MS.) 


NATURE  OF  CHALCIIIHUITLICUE 


261 


The  name  means  “ She  whose  raiment  consists  of  green 
gems,”  or  “ She  of  the  jewelled  robe,”  and  is  allegorical  of  the 
brilliant  surface  of  flowing  rather  than  stagnant  water. 
She  is,  says  Seler,  “ an  appropriate  representative  of  the 
sign  ‘ Snake.’  For  the  moving,  flowing  water  has  every- 
where and  at  all  times  been  likened  to  the  serpent.  In  cul- 
tural centres  which  are  dedicated  to  the  Water-goddess — the 
Pilon  de  Azucar,  for  instance,  which  has  been  explored  by 
Hermann  Strebel — the  ground  swarms  as  well  with  images  of 
snakes  as  of  frogs.”  1 

In  Codex  Borgia  she  is  seen  with  a bunch  of  dried  herbs 
above  her,  evidently  indicating  that  she  had  a medicinal  side 
to  her  character.  Certain  pictures  of  her — that,  for  instance, 
in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl  already  described — seem  to  point 
to  her  as  the  goddess  of  change  in  human  affairs,  of  speedy 
ruin,  and  this  conception  was,  no  doubt,  brought  about  by 
the  ever-changing  character  of  the  element  she  symbolized. 
She  is,  indeed,  the  goddess  of  water  in  its  mutable  and 
kaleidoscopic  form. 

There  is,  however,  every  reason  to  believe  that  she  had  a 
still  more  profound  significance  in  Mexican  theology,  and  this 
is  made  clear  if  we  examine  the  prayer  to  her  preserved  by 
Sahagun  in  which  she  seems  to  represent  the  purifying  and 
cleansing  influence  of  water  as  an  agency  to  wipe  away  the 
original  sin  with  which  it  was  thought  man  came  into  the 
world. 

That  the  goddess  had  also  a lunar  significance  is  plain 
from  the  allusion  to  her  as  the  mother  of  the  Centzon  Mimix- 
coa,  or  stars  of  the  Northern  Hemisphere,  and  the  great  im- 
portance attached  to  the  prayers  offered  up  to  her  in  connexion 
with  child-bearing.  As  has  been  hinted,  she  had  also  a 
medicinal  aspect.  The  child  sacrificed  to  her  at  the  etzal- 
qualiztli  festival  was  slain  at  the  hill  known  as  Yauhqueme 
(“  covered  with  mugwort  ”),  and,  as  instanced  in  the  case  of 
Tlaloc,  this  plant  is  the  especial  medicine-herb  of  the  Greek 
Artemis.  In  Codex  Borgia,  indeed,  she  is  associated  with  a 
herb  which  may  possibly  be  the  mugwort  or  wormwood,  and 

1 Commentary  on  the  Aubin  Tonalamatl,  p.  56. 


262  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


Seler  thinks  she  is  to  be  regarded  as  the  giver  of  “ healing 
draughts  of  physic.” 

UIXTOCIUATL  = “ SALT  WOMAN  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Originally  the  eastern  sea-coast. 

Relationship  : Elder  sister  of  the  Tlaloque. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS.  ( Biblioteca  del  Palacio). — The  goddess  is 
painted  yellow  and  wears  a crown  of  paper  or  cotton,  adorned 
with  quetzal- feathers  and  a golden  ear-plug.  Her  overdress 
and  skirt  are  painted  with  wavy  lines  of  water  and  she  wears 
sandals.  Her  shield  is  entirely  white  and  she  bears  a rush 
staff  in  her  hand,  from  which  depend  strips  of  cotton  or  paper. 

FESTIVALS 

Tecuilhuitontli. — “ The  seventh  month  ” (says  Sahagun, 
bk.  ii,  c.  vii)  “ was  designated  tecuilhuitontli,  the  first  day  of 
which  was  dedicated  to  the  goddess  of  salt,  who  was  styled 
Uixtociuatl.  She  was  termed  the  elder  sister  of  the  god 
Tlaloc.  A woman  was  slain  in  her  honour,  robed  with  the 
same  ornaments  as  were  worn  by  the  images  of  this  divinity. 

“ The  night  preceding  this  festival,  the  women,  old,  young, 
and  children,  gave  themselves  up  to  singing  and  dancing, 
marching  in  a ring,  linked  by  cords  which  they  each  held  by 
an  end,  which  they  called  xochimecatl,  and  which  were  gar- 
landed with  the  absinthe  flowers  of  the  country,  called 
iztauhyatl.  Old  men  led  the  songs  and  dances,  while  in  the 
midst  of  the  ring  stood  the  poor  woman  doomed  to  death, 
richly  dressed  in  the  manner  of  the  image  of  the  goddess. 
All  the  women,  in  company  with  her  who  was  to  die,  watched, 
sang  and  danced  the  whole  of  the  night  preceding  the  festival. 
Day  having  dawned,  all  the  priests  assumed  their  ornaments, 
and  partook  in  a solemn  dance,  all  these  who  assisted  carrying 
in  their  hands  flowers  called  cenvpoalxochitl.  Dancing  all 
the  way,  they  brought  several  captives  to  the  temple  of  Tlaloc, 
in  the  midst  of  whom  walked  the  woman  who  was  to  die, 


NATURE  OF  UIXTOCIUATL 


268 


dressed  as  the  image  of  Uixtociuatl.  Before  she  was  sacri- 
ficed, the  captives  were  first  put  to  death.1 

“ Several  other  ceremonies  were  conducted  during  this 
festival  and  there  were  frequent  scenes  of  debauchery.” 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  states  that 
Yxcuina,  as  he  names  the  goddess,  was  the  protector  of 
adulterers  and  “ the  goddess  of  salt  and  of  dissolute  persons.” 
He  further  relates  that  they  put  adulterers  to  death  before 
her  image.  The  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A adds  that 
she  was  the  wife  of  Mictlantecutli,  lord  of  the  realm  of  the 
dead.  One  of  the  women  given  as  consorts  to  the  victim 
sacrificed  at  the  principal  feast  of  Tezcatlipoca  was  called 
after  the  goddess. 

The  salt-supply  was  regarded  as  an  indispensable  alimen- 
tary feature  in  Mexico,  and  the  relative  importance  of  the 
worship  of  Uixtociuatl  can  readily  be  gathered  from  this 
circumstance.  Her  connexion  with  lustfulness  had  probably 
a physiological  basis,  and  perhaps  owed  its  existence  to  the 
saline  odour  which  emanates  from  the  excretions  of  the  privy 
parts.  There  is  a distinct  resemblance  between  her  name 
and  that  of  the  absinthe  plant. 

ATLAUA  = “ LORD  OF  THE  LAKE  BEACHES” 

Area  of  Worship  : Chinampanecs  of  Cuitlauac. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

The  lower  parts  of  his  extremities  are  striped  blue,  like 
those  of  Uitzilopochtli.  In  the  Sahagun  MS.  (Palacio)  he 
wears  the  domino  mask  edged  round  with  small  white  circles 
(the  “stellar  face-painting”)  and  the  mouth  and  chin  are 
blackened  or  reddened.  The  headdress  resembles  the  flag 
used  as  Uitzilopochtli’s  symbol  for  the  panquetzaliztli  festival. 

1 The  resemblance  of  this  festival  to  the  vei  teciulhuitl,  the  feast  of  Xilonen, 
is  obvious.  (For  a fuller  description,  see  Sahagun,  bk.  ii,  c.  xxvii.) 


264  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 


He  carries  the  shield  of  Uitzilopochtli,  with  the  five  balls  of 
eagle’s  down,  one  half  of  the  weapon  being  coloured  red,  like 
blood,  and  in  his  right  hand  he  holds  an  instrument  which, 
from  comparison  with  another  Sahagun  MS.  (Bib.  Laurenz.) 
we  know  to  be  a rattle.  In  this  picture  symbols  expressive  of 
singing  flow  from  his  mouth. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

He  was  a god  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  floating  gardens  of 
Lake  Xochimilco,  the  tribe  known  as  the  Chinampanecs,  and 
from  the  “ stellar  face-painting  ” he  wore  he  must  at  some 
time  have  been  identified  by  one  of  the  early  hunting  tribes 
with  one  or  other  of  the  stars.  His  possession  of  Uitzilo- 
pochtli’s  shield  is  perhaps  further  proof  of  his  stellar  associa- 
tion. He  may  have  been  one  of  the  Centzonuitznaua  (see 
Uitzilopochtli — “ Myths  ”). 

NAPATECUTLI  = “ FOUR  TIMES  LORD” 

Area  of  Worship  : Shores  of  Lake  Texcuco. 

Relationship  : One  of  the  Tlaloque. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS.  ( Bihlioteca  del  Palacio ). — The  body-paint  is 
black,  but  a plaster  of  salvia  chia  is  worn  on  the  face  under- 
neath the  eyes.  The  god  wears  a paper  crown  sprinkled  with 
rubber  gum,  and  a tuft  of  paper  at  the  back  of  the  head,  from 
which  quetzal- feathers  depend.  Two  long  strips  of  paper  hang 
from  under  the  crown  down  the  back  of  the  neck,  and  these  are 
also  sprinkled  with  rubber  gum.  Across  the  right  shoulder 
is  slung  a band  of  paper,  and  an  underdress  of  the  same 
material  surrounds  the  hips,  and  these  are  also  sprinkled  with 
gum.  Sandals  are  worn,  and  the  shield  is  decorated  with  the 
water-rose  motif.  A rush  staff  is  carried  in  the  hand,  from 
which  strips  of  paper  hang,  daubed  with  melted  indiarubber. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Sahagun  says  that  Napatecutli  “ was  the  god  of  men  who 
make  mats  out  of  aquatic  reeds,  and  wras  one  of  the  Tlaloque. 


MATLALCUEYE 


265 


He  was  the  inventor  of  mat-making,  and  was  adored  by  those 
who  made  the  low  chairs  called  icpalli,  and  the  hurdles  of 
reeds  which  are  called  tolcuextli.  He  made  the  reeds  to  grow 
and  caused  the  showers  that  made  them  spring,  and  they 
prayed  him  for  rain  and  reeds.  When  they  sacrificed  a 
slave  to  him  they  dressed  him  in  the  god’s  garments,  placing 
in  his  hands  a green  vase  filled  with  water,  with  which  he 
besprinkled  all  with  the  aid  of  a branch  of  willow,  as  if  he 
were  blessing  them.  Then,  in  the  course  of  the  year,  when- 
ever one  of  this  trade  wished  to  feast  this  divinity,  he  ac- 
quainted the  priests  with  his  intention,  who  chose  a priest, 
dressed  him  in  the  attributes  of  the  god,  like  his  image,  and 
conducted  him,  asperging  him  on  the  way,  with  a branch  of 
willow  dipped  in  water.  Arrived  at  the  house,  they  prayed 
him  to  extend  his  favours  to  the  dwelling,  and  the  feast  was 
celebrated,  the  ‘god’  eating  and  drinking  with  the  rest. 
This  was  done  with  the  desire  to  recompense  the  god,  and 
when  they  had  spent  all  they  had,  they  said  : ‘ I care  not 
if  I am  without  means,  so  long  as  my  god  is  satisfied  with 
this  feast.  He  may  grant  me  more,  he  may  leave  me  in 
misery,  so  long  as  his  will  is  accomplished.’  So  saying,  they 
covered  the  representative  of  the  god  with  a white  mantle, 
who  returned  with  his  companions.  The  householder  then 
feasted  privately  with  his  parents.  The  mat-makers  plen- 
ished  and  ornamented  the  temple  of  their  god  with  reeds  and 
plants,  and  anything  they  placed  in  the  temple  was  of  the 
best  workmanship.” 


MATLALCUEYE  = “ SHE  OF  THE  BLUE  ROBE  ” 

(Variant  of  Chalchihuitlicue) 

Area  of  Worship  : Tlaxcallan. 

Relationship  : Second  consort  of  Tlaloc. 


APPEARANCE 

She  is  recognized  by  her  tasselled  head  band  and  cape, 
and  often  by  a stepped  nose-ornament. 


266  THE  GODS  OF  RAIN  AND  MOISTURE 
NATURE  AND  STATUS 

A variant  of  Chalchihuitlicue.  She  was  believed  to  preside 
over  a mountain  near  Tlaxcallan.  One  of  the  women 
sacrificed  to  Tlaloc  at  the  great  festival  to  the  mountain- 
gods  was  called  after  this  goddess. 

OPOCHTLI  = « THE  SOUTHERN,”  “ LEFT-HANDED,” 
OR  “ THE  WIZARD” 

Area  of  Worship  : The  shores  of  Lake  Texcuco. 

Relationship  : One  of  the  Tlaloque. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

The  Sahagun  MS.  describes  the  insignia  of  this  god  as 
follows  : He  is  painted  black  and  has  a patch  or  spot  made 
from  crushed  seeds  on  his  face.  His  crown  is  cut  out  of 
paper,  and  from  it  rise  plumes  of  heron-feathers,  mingled 
with  those  of  the  quetzal  bird.  He  has  a band  made  of  paper 
round  his  shoulders,  a loin-cloth  and  white  sandals.  His 
shield  bears  the  solar  emblem  and  he  carries  a rattle-staff 
in  his  hand. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Sahagun  (bk.  i,  ch.  17)  says  of  Opochtli,  that  he  is  one 
of  the  Tlaloque.  To  him  was  attributed  the  invention  of 
fishing-nets  and  of  the  minacachalli,  or  three-pronged  harpoon, 
an  instrument  recalling  the  classical  trident,  which  was  also 
used  for  spearing  birds.  He  it  was  who  originally  contrived 
the  nets  used  by  the  fowler  to  ensnare  the  aquatic  birds 
which  frequented  the  banks  of  Lake  Texcuco,  and  the  paddle 
was  likewise  his  invention.  Of  all  the  Tlaloque  he  appears 
to  have  been  the  most  practical,  as  well  as  the  most  closely 
identified  with  human  pursuits,  and  naturally  he  figured  as 
the  patron  of  the  fisher,  the  fowler,  and  those  generally 
who  plied  their  occupation  on  the  water  of  the  lake  or  on 
its  shores.  Upon  the  occasion  of  his  festival  they  offered 
him  food  and  octli , the  ears  of  maize,  flowers,  and  burned 
tobacco  before  him  as  an  incense,  as  well  as  copal  and  the 


OPOCHTLI  INVENTOR  OF  THE  NET 


267 


absinthe  herb.  They  also  placed  before  him  toasted  maize. 
The  older  priests  chanted  his  praises  and  filed  before  his  idol 
in  procession.  As  we  have  seen  in  the  case  of  Uitzilopochtli, 
the  word  opochtli  may  signify  “ wizard,”  and  I believe  that 
the  net,  which  would  appear  to  a primitive  people  an  appar- 
atus of  the  most  ingenious  kind,  would  be  regarded  by  them 
as  the  invention  of  a magician.  Opochtli  would  almost 
inevitably  come  to  be  connected  with  the  Tlaloque  because 
of  the  employment  of  his  invention  to  catch  fish  and  snare 
the  aquatic  birds  which  rested  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Texcuco. 


CHAPTER  VII 
THE  FIRE-GODS 

XIUHTECUTLI  = “ LORD  OF  THE  YEAR” 

Area  of  Worship  : 

Mexico. 

Toltee. 

Minor  Names  : 

Tzoncaztli  = “ The  Yellow-haired.” 

In  Xiuhtetzaqualco  maquitoc  = “ He  who  enters  the  Blue  Stone 
Pyramid.” 

Yei  itzcuintli  = “ Three  Dog.” 

Cuezaltzin  = “ The  Flame.” 

Chicunaui  tecutli  = “ Nine  Lord.” 

Ueueteotl  = “ The  Old  God.” 

Tlatic  paque  = “ Lord  of  the  Earth’s  Surface.” 

Tota  = “ Our  Father.” 

Tloque  Nahuaque  = “ Lord  of  the  Close  Vicinity.” 

Tlalxictentica  = “ Dweller  in  the  Navel  of  the  Earth.” 
Ixcofauhque  = “ The  Yellow-faced.” 

Calendar  Place  : 

Ruler  of  the  ninth  day-count,  atl  (water). 

Ruler  of  the  ninth  lonalamatl  division,  ce  coatl. 

Ruler  of  the  twentieth  tonalamatl  division,  ce  tochtli. 

First  of  the  nine  lords  of  the  night. 

First  of  the  thirteen  lords  of  the  day. 

Festivals  : 

Xocohuetzi,  in  the  tenth  month. 

Izcalli,  in  the  eighteenth  month. 

The  day  ce  itzcuintli  (“  one  dog  ”)  (movable  feast). 

Compass  Direction  : Lord  of  the  Middle  and  of  the  four  quarters. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  V aticanus  B. — Sheet  19  : In  this  place  he  is  repre- 
sented standing  before  a temple  with  a bundle  of  firewood 
and  a rubber  ball  in  his  hand.  The  temple  contains  imple- 

268 


INSIGNIA  OF  THE  FIRE-GOD 


269 


ments  of  war.  He  is  painted  red,  with  the  lower  part  of  the 
face  blackened  by  melted  rubber  and  a black  cross,  the  foot 
of  which  rests  on  a level  with  his  eye.  The  fillet  round  his 
head  is  a strap  set  with  jewelled  disks.  On  the  necklace 
is  seen  a blue  bird  ( cotinga , or  humming-bird).  That  part 
of  his  face  which  is  not  black,  and  which  in  the  Codex  Borgia 
is  painted  a red  colour  like  the  rest  of  the  body,  is  on  sheet 
89  painted  yellow,  with  slender  thread-shaped  longitudinal 
stripes  of  red.  On  sheet  57  he  is  seen  as  in  the  ninth  day- 
count — red,  and  with  red  and  black  face-painting  and  flame- 
coloured  hair,  with  the  cotinga  bird  flying  down  on  the  frontal 
side  of  the  fillet,  and  with  arrow-shaft  feathers  in  the  crown. 
At  the  nape  of  the  neck  can  be  seen  a short  crest  of  red  points 
enclosing  three  tufts  of  red  feathers,  which,  perhaps,  originate 
in  the  xivhcoatl,  or  fire-snake  worn  in  the  Mexican  MSS. 
proper  by  the  Fire-god  on  his  back  as  a disguise  (cf. 
Codex  Borbonicus).  He  has  here  the  scorpion  and  atl- 
tlachinolli  “ spear-throwing  and  fire  ” sign,  and  is  seated  on 
a royal  throne,  with  an  abundance  of  food  before  him, 
which  probably  symbolizes  wealth.  He  also  wears  a breast- 
ornament  of  blue  turquoise  mosaic  with  golden  bells.  Pie 
sometimes  wears  the  priest’s  tobacco-calabash  as  a sign 
of  wealth  or  abundance. 

Aubin-Goupil  Tonalamatl . — Sheet  20 : He  holds  the  copal 
bag  in  one  hand  and  in  the  other  two  agave- leaf  spikes  with 
flowers  (blood)  at  the  upper  end.  Before  the  face  of  the 
Fire-god  we  see  a sea-snail’s  shell,  which  is,  perhaps,  symbolic 
of  fire  shut  up  or  enclosed  in  the  house.  Before  him,  too, 
is  a vessel  with  offerings  or  sacrificial  balls.  Below  is  an 
agave  spike  with  the  flower-emblem  of  blood.  Beside  it 
are  the  symbol  of  midnight,  the  eye  enveloped  in  darkness, 
and  a tuft  of  quetzal- feathers — all  symbolic  of  the  midnight 
penance. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  14  : In  this  codex  the  representation 
of  the  Fire-god  is  in  many  respects  similar  to  that  in  Vaiicanus 
B.  The  face  and  body-paint  are  red.  The  jewelled  fillet 
is  ornamented  with  the  conventional  representation  of  a 
cotinga  bird  in  the  attitude  of  flying  down  such  as  may  be 


270 


FIRE-GODS 


observed  in  the  figures  allied  with  the  Fire-god,  and  which 
is  also  seen  in  reliefs  at  Chichen-Itza,  Yucatan.  In  the 
fillet  are  placed  two  arrow-shafts,  which  represent  the  two 
wooden  fire-disks — an  ornament  that  is  called  “ arrow-wig  ” 
or  “ spear-wig.”  Above  this  is  seen  a tiara,  which  broadens 
as  it  rises  upwards.  Xiuhtecutli  wears  attached  to  a long 
pendant  necklace  a square  plate  of  blue  colour,  made  of 
turquoise  mosaic.  In  some  places  he  wields  the  “ shooting 
implement,”  the  throwing-stick,  or  the  blue  throwing- 
stick,  xiuhatlatl,  fashioned  in  the  form  of  a snake.  The 
scorpion  is  frequently  placed  beside  the  god,  symbolizing, 
perhaps,  the  stinging  character  of  fire. 

Code; r Telleriano-llcmensis. — He  holds  in  one  hand  the 
xiuhatlatl,  the  throwing-stick  painted  blue,  decked  with 
turquoise  mosaic  and  having  a figure  on  the  top,  probably 
intended  for  a snake.  In  the  other  hand  he  has  a staff, 
which  at  the  upper  crutch-like  end  shows  an  animal’s  head,  and 
the  lower  a snake’s  tail-rattles. 

Codex  Magliahecchiano. — The  Fire-god  is  here  seen  in  a 
dancing  or  fighting  attitude.  The  dragon-mask  lies  behind 
the  neck,  and  he  wears  a yellow  and  red  hat  resembling  an 
inverted  cone,  with  a serpent  motif  in  front.  The  face-paint 
is  yellow  for  the  upper  part  of  the  face,  the  mouth-region 
red  and  the  lower  posterior  part  black.  His  tunic  is 
white,  with  a blue  sash  or  centre-piece,  and  he  wears  the 
yellow  breast-ornament.  In  one  hand  he  carries  the  atlatl, 
or  spear-thrower,  and  in  the  other  a white,  unpainted 
shield. 

Sahagun  MS. — Sahagun,  describing  Xiuhtecutli  under 
his  minor  name  of  Ixco^auhque  (“  The  Yellow-faced  ”),  says 
that  he  is  painted  red  and  black,  and  is  smeared  with  india- 
rubber  on  lips  and  chin.  He  wears  a headband  set  with 
precious  stones  and  a paper  crown  with  a plume  of  quetzal- 
feathers.  He  carries  on  his  back  his  fire-snake  dress  and 
round  his  shoulders  is  slung  a band  of  bark  paper.  On 
his  feet  he  wears  bells  and  shells.  His  shield  is  ornamented 
with  precious  stones,  and  in  one  hand  he  carries  an  instru- 
ment the  use  of  which  is  apparently  divinatory. 


HYMN  OF  THE  FIRE-GOD 


271 


MYTHS 

A song  given  by  Sahagun  has  reference  to  the  Fire-god. 


Song  of  the  Yellow- faced 
( The  Fire-gods ) 

O,  in  Tzoramolco  my  father  shall  I dishonour  Thee  ? (i.e.  withhold  the 
sacrifice)  ; 

In  Tetemocan  shall  I dishonour  Thee  ? 

2 

O my  master,  in  the  Temple  of  Mecatlan  the  yucca  Tree  shakes  (the 
kettle-drum  made  out  of  wood  from  the  Yucca  tree); 

In  Chicueyocan  in  the  house  of  the  masked,  the 
masked  dancers  have  come. 


3 

In  Tzommolco  they  have  begun  to  sing, 

In  Tzommolco  they  have  begun  to  sing ; 

Why  do  they  not  come  here  ? 

Why  do  they  not  come  here  ? 

4 

In  Tzommolco  men  shall  be  given  (sacrificed) ; 
The  sun  has  risen. 

Men  shall  be  given. 


5 

In  Tzommolco  song  now  comes  to  an  end. 

Without  trouble  he  has  become  rich  ; 

He  has  become  lord. 

His  mercy  is  wonderful. 

6 

O,  little  woman,  hold  speech  (give  warning), 

Mistress  of  the  mist  house,  from  the  door  hold  speech. 


Sahagun  says  of  him  1 : 

“ He  had  other  names — Ixcozauhqui,  ‘ Yellow-face,’  and 
Cuezaltzin,  or  * Flame.’  They  called  him  also  Ueueteotl,  or 
‘ Very  Old  God,’  and  they  said  that  the  fire  was  his  father. 
They  celebrated  his  feast  at  the  end  of  the  month  called 


1 Bk.  i,  c.  xiii. 


272 


FIRE-GODS 


izcalli , and  dressed  the  idol  in  his  robes  and  ornaments. 
He  wore  the  robes  of  a king.” 

In  the  Sahagun  Mexican  MS.  he  is  described  as  “ the 
mother  of  the  gods,  the  father  of  the  gods,  who  dwells  in 
the  navel  of  the  earth,  who  enters  the  Turquoise  Pyramid  . . . 
the  Old  God,  the  Fire-god.”  1 

Sahagun  * also  alludes  to  the  god  in  the  prayer  of  the 
merchants,  which  says  : “ Sit  still  on  thy  throne,  noble 
Lord,  thou  that  in  the  navel  of  the  earth  hast  thy  seat, 
Lord  of  the  Four  Quarters.” 

In  this  prayer  he  is  also  frequently  addressed  as  “ Lord 
of  the  With  and  the  By  ” (the  contiguous  neighbourhood), 
“ the  Lord  of  Heaven,  the  Lord  of  the  Surface  of  the  Earth.” 
Sahagun  in  a prayer  to  Tezcatlipoca  alludes  to  Xiuhtecutli 
as  “ the  ancient  god,  who  is  father  and  mother  to  thyself, 
and  is  god  of  fire,  who  stands  in  the  midst  of  flowers,  in  the 
midst  of  the  place  bounded  by  four  walls,  who  is  covered 
with  shining  feathers  that  are  as  wings  ” 5 ; and  in  another 
prayer  to  Tezcatlipoca,  speaks  of  Xuihtecutli  as  “ the  ancient 
god,  the  father  of  all  the  gods,  the  god  of  fire,  who  is  in  the 
pond  of  water  among  turrets  surrounded  with  stones  like 
roses,  who  is  called  Xiuhtecutli,  who  determines,  examines, 
and  settles  the  business  and  law-suits  of  the  nation  and  of 
the  common  people,  as  it  were  washing  them  with  water  .”  4 
Clavigero  says  of  Xiuhtecutli  : 

“ Xiuhtecutli  (master  of  the  year  and  of  the  grass)  was 
among  these  nations  the  god  of  fire,  to  whom  they  likewise 
gave  the  name  of  Ixcozauhqui,  which  expresses  the  colour 
of  fire.  This  god  was  greatly  revered  in  the  Mexican  empire. 
At  their  dinner  they  made  an  offering  to  him  of  the  first 
morsel  of  their  food,  and  the  first  draught  of  their  beverage, 
by  throwing  both  into  the  fire  ; and  burned  incense  to  him 
at  certain  times  of  the  day.  In  honour  of  him  they  held  two 
fixed  festivals  of  the  most  solemn  kind,  one  in  the  tenth, 
and  another  in  the  eighteenth  month  ; and  one  movable 
feast,  at  which  they  created  the  usual  magistrates  and  re- 

1 Bk.  vi,  c.  xvii.  * Bk.  ix,  c.  iii. 

3 Bk.  vi,  c.  iv.  4 Bk.  vi,  c.  ix. 


X 1 1 ’IITK<  TTL 1 AN IJ  TLA l'IZ(  'ALFA NTE(  I'TLI . 
(From  Codex  Vatimnus  H,  sheet  fii.) 


THE  XOCHOHUETZI  FESTIVAL 


273 


newed  the  ceremony  of  the  investiture  of  the  fiefs  of  the 
kingdom.  He  had  a temple  in  Mexico,  and  some  other 
palaces.” 

FESTIVALS 

Xocohuetzi. — Sahagun’s  account  of  this  festival  is  sub- 
stantially as  follows  1 : 

A great  tree  of  five  and  twenty  fathoms  long  was  cut  down 
and  the  branches  lopped  off  except  a few  at  the  top.  The 
tree  was  then  dragged  by  ropes  into  the  city,  great  precautions 
being  taken  against  damaging  it.  The  women  met  the  pro- 
cession, giving  those  who  had  helped  cocoa  to  drink.  The 
tree,  which  was  called  zocotl,  was  received  into  the  court  of  a 
teocalli  with  acclamation,  and  there  set  up  in  a hole  in  the 
ground  and  allowed  to  remain  for  twenty  days.  On  the 
eve  of  the  festival  they  lowered  the  tree  gently  to  the  ground 
by  means  of  ropes  and  trestles  made  of  beams  lashed  together. 
It  was  dressed  until  quite  smooth,  and  where  the  branches 
had  been  left,  near  the  top,  a cross-beam  of  five  fathoms  long 
was  secured  by  ropes.  On  the  summit  of  the  pole  a statue 
of  the  god  Xiuhtecutli  was  set,  made  out  of  the  dough  of 
wild  amaranth  seeds,  and  decorated  with  white  papers. 
To  the  head  of  the  image  were  affixed  pieces  of  paper  instead 
of  hair,  bands  of  paper  crossed  the  body  from  each  shoulder, 
on  the  arms  were  pieces  of  paper  like  wings  painted  over 
with  figures  of  sparrow-hawks,  a maxtli  of  paper  covered  the 
loins,  and  a kind  of  paper  garment  covered  all.  Great  strips 
of  paper,  half  a fathom  broad  and  ten  fathoms  long,  floated 
from  the  feet  of  the  image,  and  into  his  head  were  stuck 
three  rods  with  a tamalli,  or  small  cake,  on  the  top  of  each. 
Ten  ropes  were  then  attached  to  the  middle  of  the  tree, 
and  the  structure  was  reared  into  an  upright  position  and 
there  secured  with  great  uproar. 

Those  who  had  captives  to  sacrifice  came  decorated  for 
dancing,  the  body  painted  yellow  (the  colour  of  the  god), 
and  the  face  vermilion.  They  wore  the  red  plumes  of  the 
parrot  arranged  to  resemble  a butterfly,  and  carried  shields 
1 Bk.  ii,  c.  xxix. 


18 


274 


FIRE-GODS 


covered  with  white  feathers.  Each  danced  side  by  side  with 
his  captive.  These  had  the  body  painted  white,  and  the 
face  vermilion,  save  the  cheeks,  which  were  black.  They 
were  adorned  with  papers,  and  they  had  white  feathers  on 
the  head  and  lip-ornaments  of  feathers.  At  set  of  sun  the 
dancing  ceased,  the  captives  were  shut  up  in  the  calpulli 
and  watched  by  their  owners,  not  being  permitted  to  sleep. 
About  midnight  every  owner  shaved  away  part  of  the  hair 
from  the  scalp  of  the  head  of  his  captive,  which,  being  fastened 
with  red  thread  to  a little  tuft  of  feathers,  he  put  in  a small  case 
of  cane  and  attached  to  the  rafters  of  the  house,  that  every- 
one might  see  that  he  was  a valiant  man  and  had  taken  a 
captive.  The  knife  with  which  this  shaving  was  accomplished 
was  known  as  the  claw  of  the  sparrow-hawk.  At  daybreak 
the  captives  were  arranged  in  order  in  front  of  the  tzompantli, 
where  the  skulls  of  the  sacrificed  were  spitted  in  rows.  A 
priest  walked  along  the  row  of  captives,  taking  from  them 
certain  little  banners  that  they  carried  and  all  their  raiment 
or  adornment,  which  he  burnt  in  a fire.  While  they  stood 
naked  and  waiting  for  death,  another  priest,  carrying  in  his 
arms  the  image  of  the  god  Paynal  and  his  ornaments,  ran 
up  with  this  idol  to  the  top  of  the  teocalli  known  as  Tlacacouh- 
can,  where  the  victims  were  to  die.  He  descended,  then 
returned  to  the  summit,  and  as  he  went  up  for  the  second 
time,  the  owners  took  their  slaves  by  the  hair  and  led  them 
to  the  place  called  Apetlac,  where  they  left  them.  The 
priests  who  were  to  perform  the  sacrifice  then  descended 
from  the  teocalli  bearing  bags  of  a narcotic  incense  called 
yauhtli  (absinthe,  wormwood,  or  mugwort),  which  they  threw 
by  handfuls  into  the  faces  of  the  victims  to  mitigate  their 
death-agonies.  Each  captive  was  then  bound  hand  and  foot 
and  carried  up  to  the  top  of  the  teocalli.  On  the  summit  a 
great  fire  burned.  Upon  this  the  priests  cast  the  captives, 
who,  when  half-roasted,  were  dragged  out  with  the  aid  of 
grappling-hooks  and  sacrificed  by  having  their  hearts  torn 
out.  The  statue  of  Paynal  was  then  carried  away  to  its 
own  temple  and  all  returned  home.  The  young  men  and 
boys  with  the  women  began  at  midday  to  dance  and  to 


THE  IZCALLI  FESTIVAL 


275 


sing  in  the  courtyard  of  Xiulitecutli.  Suddenly  they  made 
in  a body  for  the  place  where  the  tree  already  described 
had  been  raised.  At  a given  signal  all  might  attempt  to  scale 
the  pole  to  reach  the  dough  image  at  the  top.  The  first 
youth  at  the  top  seized  the  idol  of  dough,  took  the  shield  and 
the  arrows,  the  darts  and  the  tamalis  from  the  head  of  the 
statue,  then  threw  the  crumbs  with  the  plumes  of  the  image 
down  into  the  crowd,  who  fought  and  scrambled  for  them. 
When  the  successful  youth  descended  from  the  pole  with 
the  weapons  of  the  god,  he  was  received  with  acclamations 
and  carried  up  to  the  teocalli  Tlacacouhcan,  to  receive  jewels 
and  a rich  mantle  which  no  one  else  might  wear,  and  the 
honour  of  being  carried  to  his  house  by  the  priests,  amid 
the  music  of  horns  and  shells.  Then  the  people  seized  the 
ropes  fastened  to  the  tree  and  dragged  it  down. 

Izcalli. — The  following  is  a digest  of  Sahagun’s  description 
of  this  festival  1 : 

Another  feast  of  the  god  of  fire  was  held  in  the  month 
yzcalli,  the  eighteenth  month  ; it  was  called  motlaocquiantota, 
that  is  to  say,  “ our  father  the  fire  roasts  his  food.”  An 
image  of  the  god  of  fire  was  made,  by  tying  a frame  of  hoops 
and  sticks  together  and  covering  them  with  his  ornaments. 
On  the  head  of  the  image  was  placed  a mask  of  turquoise 
mosaic,  banded  across  with  rows  of  green  chalchihuitls . Upon 
the  mask  was  put  a crown  fitting  to  the  head  below,  wide 
above,  and  covered  with  rich  plumage.  A wig  of  reddish 
hair  was  attached  to  this  crown  so  that  the  locks  flowed 
from  below  it,  behind  and  around  the  mask.  A robe  of  fea- 
thers covered  the  front  of  the  image  and  fell  over  the  ground 
before  the  feet.  The  back  of  the  image  was  probably  left 
unadorned  and  was  concealed  by  a throne  covered  with  a 
jaguar-skin.  Before  this  statue  new  fire  was  made  at  mid- 
night with  the  fire-stick.  The  spark  obtained  was  put 
on  the  hearth  and  a fire  lit.  At  break  of  day  boys  and  youths 
came  with  game  and  fish  that  they  had  captured  on  the 
previous  day.  Walking  round  the  fire,  they  gave  it  to  certain 
old  men  that  stood  there,  who,  taking  it,  threw  it  into  the 

1 Bk.  ii,  c.  xxxvii. 


276 


FIRE-GODS 


flames  before  the  god,  giving  the  youths  in  return  certain 
tamalis  made  for  this  purpose  by  the  women.  To  eat  these 
tamalis  it  was  necessary  to  strip  off  the  maize-leaves  in  which 
they  had  been  wrapped  and  cooked  ; these  leaves  were  not 
thrown  into  the  fire,  but  were  all  put  together  and  thrown 
into  water.  After  this  all  the  old  men  of  the  quarter  in  which 
the  fire  was  drank  octli  and  sang  before  the  image  of  Xiuhte- 
cutli  till  night.  This  was  the  tenth  day  of  the  month,  and 
completed  that  part  of  the  feast  which  was  called  vauquitamal- 
qualiztli. 

On  the  twentieth  and  last  day  of  the  month  was  made 
another  statue  of  the  Fire-god,  on  a frame  of  sticks  and  hoops. 
They  placed  on  the  head  a mask  with  a ground  of  mosaic 
with  small  pieces  of  the  shell  called  tapaztli,  composed  below 
the  mouth  of  black  stones,  banded  across  the  nostrils  with 
black  stones  of  another  sort,  and  the  cheeks  made  of  a still 
different  stone  called  tezcapuchtli.  As  in  the  previous  case, 
there  was  a crown  on  this  mask,  and  over  all  and  over  the 
body  of  the  image  costly  and  beautiful  decorations  of  feather- 
work.  Before  the  throne  on  which  this  statue  sat  there  was 
a fire,  and  the  youths  offered  game  to  and  received  cakes 
from  the  old  men  with  various  ceremonies,  the  day  closing 
with  the  drinking  of  octli  by  the  old  people,  though  not  to 
the  point  of  intoxication. 

The  festivals  of  this  month  were  usually  without  human 
sacrifices,  but  every  fourth  year  was  an  exception  to  this. 
In  such  a year,  on  the  twentieth  and  last  day  of  the  month, 
men  and  women  were  slain  as  images  of  the  god  of  fire. 
The  women  who  had  to  die  carried  all  their  apparel  and 
ornaments  on  their  shoulders,  and  the  men  did  the  same. 
They  were  decorated  to  resemble  the  god  of  fire  ; they  ascended 
the  teocalli,  walked  round  the  sacrificial  stone,  and  then  de- 
scended and  returned  to  the  place  where  they  were  to  be  kept 
for  the  night.  Each  man  had  a rope  tied  round  the  middle 
of  his  body,  which  was  held  by  his  guards.  At  midnight  the 
hair  of  the  crown  of  the  head  of  each  was  shaven  off  before 
the  fire  and  kept  for  a relic,  and  the  head  itself  was  covered 
with  a mixture  of  resin  and  hen’s  feathers.  After  this  the 


IXCOCAUHQUI. 
(From  the  Sahagun  MS.) 


CHANTICO. 

(From  Codex  Telleriano-Reme.nsis,  fol.  21,  Verso.)  (See  p.  280.) 


THE  CE  ITZCUINTLI  FESTIVAL 


277 


victims  burned  their  clothing,  or  gave  it  away  to  their  keepers, 
and  as  the  morning  broke  they  were  decorated  with  papers 
and  led  to  the  place  of  sacrifice  with  singing  and  dancing. 
These  festivities  went  on  till  midday,  when  a priest  of  the 
temple,  arrayed  in  the  ornaments  of  the  god  Paynal,  came 
down,  passed  before  the  victims,  and  then  went  up  again. 
They  were  led  up  after  him  in  the  order  in  which  they  had 
to  die.  There  was  then  a grand  dance  of  the  nobles,  led  by 
the  king  himself,  each  dancer  wearing  a high-crowned  paper 
coronet,  a kind  of  false  nose  of  blue  paper,  earrings  of  tur- 
quoise mosaic,  or  of  wood  wrought  with  flowers,  a blue, 
flowered  jacket,  and  a mantle.  Suspended  from  the  neck 
of  each  was  the  figure  of  a dog  made  of  paper  and  painted 
with  flowers.  In  the  right  hand  was  carried  a stick  shaped 
like  a chopping-knife,  the  lower  half  of  which  was  painted 
red  and  the  upper  half  white.  In  the  left  hand  was  carried 
a little  paper  bag  of  copal.  The  dance  was  begun  on  the  top 
of  the  teocalli,  and  finished  by  the  dancers  descending  and 
going  four  times  round  the  courtyard  of  the  temple,  after 
which  all  entered  the  palace  with  the  king.  This  dance 
took  place  only  once  in  four  years,  and  none  but  the  king 
and  his  lords  could  take  part  in  it.  On  this  day  the  ears 
of  all  children  born  during  the  three  preceding  years  were 
pierced  with  a bone  awl,  and  the  children  themselves  passed 
near  or  through  the  flames  of  a fire.  There  was  a further 
ceremony  of  taking  the  children  by  the  head  and  lifting  them 
up,  “ to  make  them  grow,”  and  from  this  the  month  took 
its  name,  yzcalli,  meaning  “ growth.” 

Ce  itzcuintli. — Of  this  movable  feast  Sahagun  says  1 : 

“ They  said  that  the  sign  ce  itzcuintli  was  the  sign  of  fire, 
and  on  it  they  made  a great  feast  to  Xiuhtecutli,  god  of  fire, 
to  whom  they  offered  copal  incense  and  numbers  of  quails. 
They  decked  his  image  with  paper  of  different  kinds  and 
many  rich  ornaments.  Then  the  great  made  high  celebra- 
tion of  the  event  in  their  houses.  It  was  under  this  sign 
that  they  made  election  of  the  king  and  the  consuls,  which 
was  celebrated  in  the  fourteenth  temple  by  banquets,  dances, 

1 Bk.  ii,  c.  xix. 


278 


FIRE-GODS 


and  great  liberality.  It  was  at  those  feasts  that  war  upon 
enemies  was  proclaimed.” 


TEMPLE 

Sahagun  states  1 that  the  tzommolco  was  the  temple  of 
Xiuhteeutli.  At  the  foot  of  the  steps  of  this  temple  was  a 
terrace  to  which  several  steps  gave  access,  and  upon  this 
certain  female  slaves  were  occasionally  sacrificed. 

PRIESTHOOD 

The  Ixcocauhqui  Tzommolco  teohua  appear  to  have  been 
the  especial  priests  of  Xiuhteeutli.2 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Although  Xiuhteeutli  undoubtedly  appeared  to  the  Mexi- 
cans as  the  personification  of  fire,  it  was  more  as  that  element 
in  its  primeval  and  original  form,  its  chaotic  and  elemental 
shape.  He  is,  indeed,  the  pre-solar  fire  which  existed  before 
the  creation  of  the  sun  or  moon,  and  just  as  the  gods  of  water 
ruled  over  moisture  wherever  it  was  to  be  found,  so  was 
Xiuhteeutli  imagined  as  holding  sway  over  fire,  whether  it 
came  from  the  heavens  above  or  the  earth  beneath.  Thus 
we  find  him  spoken  of  by  Sahagun  as  dwelling  in  the  navel 
of  the  earth,  where  the  volcanic  fires  have  their  origin,  and  as 
having  his  place  above  in  what  appears  to  be  a species  of 
cloud-castle,  for  the  Mexican  word  for  “ embattlement  ” 
is  derived  from  that  for  “ cloud.”  5 He  is  also  called  “ He 
who  entereth  the  blue  stone  pyramid,”  which  is,  of  course, 
the  sky. 

He  corresponds  to  the  hour  before  sunrise,  which  makes 
it  clear  that  his  prehistoric  precedence  to  the  sun  was  insisted 
upon  in  the  list  of  the  day-hours.  The  texts  dwell  upon  his 
antiquity,  for  he  is,  indeed,  the  Old  God,  the  god  who  existed 
before  the  foundations  of  the  world,  father  and  mother  of 

1 Bk.  ii,  Appendix. 

2 See  Sahagun,  bk.  ii,  Appendix. 

3 Seler,  Commentary  on  Tonalamutl  oj  the  Aubin  Qoupil  Collection,  p.  73. 


NATURE  OF  XIUHTECUTLI 


279 


the  gods,  and  in  this  I think  I see  a reference  to  the  shaping 
nature  of  fire,  its  moulding  or  creating  influence,  as  observed 
in  many  mythologies.  But  in  most  pantheons  fire-gods 
undertake  the  work  of  the  smith,  and  this  seems  to  have 
given  rise  to  the  idea  of  their  creative  capacity.  That  parti- 
cular craft,  however,  was  unknown  in  Mexico,  and  I am 
therefore  at  a loss  to  understand  this  particular  phase  of 
Xiuhtecutli,  unless  it  be  that  as  fire  was  regarded  by  the 
Mexicans  as  a symbol  of  renewal  or  rebirth  (from  the  fact 
that  fresh  fuel  was  capable  of  adding  renewed  life  to  a dying 
fire),  and  that  the  idea  of  creation  had  no  place  in  their  minds 
except  as  a renewal  of  the  universe,  it  may  have  been  that 
they  regarded  that  element  as  a vehicle  or  a symbol  of  re- 
creation. Out  of  this  conception,  too,  arose  the  belief  that 
Xiuhtecutli  renewed  the  year,  from  which  circumstance 
he  takes  his  title  “ Lord  of  the  Year,”  Izcalli,  too,  the  name 
of  one  of  his  festivals,  means  “ growth,”  or  perhaps  “ con- 
tinuance,” and  seems  to  be  connected  in  some  manner  with 
this  belief. 

His  rulership  of  the  ninth  day  and  the  ninth  week,  of  which 
the  symbol  is  all,  water,  seems  directly  opposed  to  all  our 
ideas  of  his  character,  but,  as  Seler  points  out,  the  Mexicans 
thought  of  water  “ primarily  as  a derivative  concrete  element, 
which  originally  means  something  like  ‘ the  shooting  thing,’ 
derived  from  the  verb  a,  which  was  in  fact  used  in  the  sense 
of  ‘ to  shoot,  to  throw  the  spear.’  ” It  is  also  connected 
with  the  symbol  tlachinolli,  which  Seler  1 states  means 
“ spear-throwing  and  firebrand,”  that  is,  “ war.”  In  the 
Codex  Borgia  group,  too,  where  *he  Fire-god  is  pictured  as 
ruler  of  the  ninth  day,  we  find  equivalents  to  this  symbol, 
which  undoubtedly  connect  him  with  the  destruction  which 
follows  upon  war,  and  there  are  also  pictorial  indications, 
such  as  the  throne  with  the  jaguar-skin  covering,  which 
associate  him  with  the  idea  of  justice,  of  law-giving,  and,  again, 
with  that  of  sustenance. 

As  Lord  of  the  Middle,  of  the  Centre,  too,  he  is  undoubtedly 
ruler  of  the  domestic  hearth,  which  in  the  houses  of  the 

1 Commentary  on  the  Tonalamatl  of  the  Aubin  Collection,  p.  71. 


280 


FIRE-GODS 


Mexicans  was  situated  in  the  middle  of  the  dwelling.  He 
was  also  thought  of  as  the  “ Lord  of  Wealth,”  especially 
that  hoarded  in  the  house  by  careful  housekeeping  and  fore- 
sight, and  diligent  workmanship  in  the  fields.1 

CHANTICO  = “ IN  THE  HOUSE  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Xocliimilco. 

Minor  Names  : 

Quaxolotl  = “ Two-headed.” 

Chicunaui  itzcuintli  = “ Nine  Dog.” 

Papaloxaual  = “ Butterfly  Painting.” 

Tlappapalo  = “ She  of  the  Red  Butterfly.” 

Yei  Cuetzpalin  = “ Three  Lizard.” 

Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  eighteenth  tonalamatl  division,  ce 
eecatl. 

Compass  Direction  : The  west. 

Festival  : Cldchunaui  itzcuintli,  the  day  “ nine  dog.” 

Symbol  : The  eagle’s  foot. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS. — The  lower  half  of  her  face  is  black,  daubed 
with  rubber,  and  the  upper  half  is  red.  She  has  a golden 
ear-plug.  She  wears  a red  garment  and  her  hair  is  bound 
up  in  a fillet  of  cotton  rags.  On  her  back  she  wears  the  arrow- 
like device  meiotli.  Her  overdress  is  “ the  colour  of  spring 
flowers.”  In  one  hand  she  holds  a feather  staff,  the  paper 
covering  of  which  is  painted  with  the  acute-angled  figure 
which  denotes  cotton,  and  in  the  other  she  bears  the  shield 
with  the  device  of  the  eagle’s  foot.  Sahagun  says  her 
priest  had  to  keep  in  readiness  for  her  festival  red  and  black 
pigments,  a robe,  white  sandals,  and  small  shells. 

Codex  Borgia. — In  this  MS.  she  is  represented  with  a yellow 
face  and  a yellow  body.  She  wears  a red  tippet,  white  skirt, 
and  a step-shaped  nose-ornament,  while  her  head  is  wrapped 
round  with  a red  cloth  edged  with  white  shell  disks,  a feather 
decoration  surmounting  the  cloth. 

1 See  also  T.  L.  Preuss,  Die  Feuergotter  als  Ausgangspunkl  zum  Verstandniss 
der  Mexikanischen  Religion  (“  Mittelungen  der  Anthropologische  Gesellschaft 
in  Wien,”  vol.  xxxiii,  Vienna,  1903,  pp.  129-233). 


MYTH  OF  CHANTICO 


281 


Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Here  she  has  a yellow  face  with  two 
red  cross-lines  like  the  narrow  black  stroke  on  the  face  of 
the  Fire-god. 

Codex  Telleriano-Remensis. — Her  face  is  painted  yellow, 
disposed  in  a number  of  fields,  each  containing  a ring  in  the 
centre.  She  has  the  long  tusk  of  a carnivorous  beast.  She 
wears  golden  pendants  in  nose  and  ears,  possibly  a symbol 
of  the  solar  pictograph,  and  on  her  head  she  wears  the  water- 
and-fire  symbol  tlachinolli.  She  wears  the  maxtlatl  of  the 
men,  to  symbolize  her  warlike  nature,  with  a death’s-head 
behind  her  girdle. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — The  lower  half  of  her  face  is  painted 
black,  and  the  upper  red,  like  that  of  Xiuhtecutli.  She  wears 
a blue  nose-plug,  the  decoration  of  the  dead  warriors.  On 
her  head  she  has  the  water-and-fire  symbol. 

MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  regards 
Chantico  as  a male  god,  and  states  that : 

“ Chantico  or  Cuaxolotle  presided  over  these  thirteen 
signs  and  was  lord  of  Chile,  or  of  the  yellow  woman.  He  was 
the  first  who  offered  sacrifice  after  having  eaten  a fried  fish  ; 
the  smoke  of  which  ascended  to  heaven,  at  which  Tonacate- 
cotle  became  incensed  and  pronounced  a curse  against  him 
that  he  should  be  turned  into  a dog,  which  accordingly  hap- 
pened, and  they  named  him  on  this  account  Chantico, 
which  is  another  name  for  Miquitlantecotle.  From  this 
transgression  the  destruction  of  the  world  ensued.  He  was 
called  Nine  Dogs  from  the  sign  on  which  he  was  born.” 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A deals  with 
Chantico  in  almost  the  same  words  : 

“ Chantico,  they  say,  was  the  first  who  offered  sacrifice 
after  having  eaten  a fried  fish,  and  that  in  consequence  of 
the  presumption  of  offering  sacrifices  without  having  fasted, 
Tonacatecutli  became  incensed  and  pronounced  a curse  against 
him  that  he  should  be  changed  into  a dog,  which  is  an  animal 
of  a very  voracious  nature  ; and  accordingly  they  named  him 
Nine  Dogs.” 


282 


FIRE-GODS 


This  myth  should  be  compared  with  that  of  Nata  and 
Nena  in  the  chapter  on  Cosmogony. 

FESTIVAL 

Chicunaui  itzcuintli  (“  Nine  Dog  ”). — Sahagun  1 states  that 
the  lapidaries  of  Xochimilco  who  cut  precious  stones  adored, 
among  others,  this  goddess  and  made  a feast  to  her  on  the 
above  sign.  They  attributed  to  her  the  articles  of  feminine 
toilet,  and  ornamented  her  with  golden  earrings  and  a butter- 
fly nose-plug  of  the  same  metal.  At  her  festival  four  captives 
represented  Chantico,  Naualpilli,*  Macuilcalli,3  and  Cinteotl, 
and  were  dressed  in  their  insignia.  Duran  (who  confounds 
Chantico  with  Tlazolteotl)  states  that  at  this  feast  these 
captives  were  cast  into  a fire  exactly  as  at  the  xocohuetzi 
festival  to  Xiuhtecutli  (q.v.),  and  that  after  the  offering  the 
priests  mortified  themselves  by  letting  the  resin  from  burn- 
ing copal  torches  drop  on  their  limbs. 

TEMPLE  AND  PRIESTHOOD 

The  idol  of  Chantico  was  kept  in  close  confinement  in  the 
dark  Tlillan,  and  was  not  visible  to  the  vulgar  gaze.  Saha- 
gun states  that  she  had  a temple  in  Mexico  called  Tetlanman, 
and  priests  who  lived  in  the  Tetlanman  Calmecac,4  and  that 
the  office  of  these  priests,  the  lecamma  teoaa,  was  the  fur- 
nishing of  paint,  feathers,  and  other  necessaries  for  the  feast 
of  the  goddess. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Like  Xiuhtecutli,  the  character  of  Chantico  is  expressed 
by  a watery  sign,  that  of  quiauitl  (rain).  This,  however, 
is  really  connected  with  the  old  mythic  fire-rain  at  the  end 
of  the  water-sun  age,  when  fire  fell  from  heaven  and  “ the 
foam-stones  foamed  up  and  the  rocks  became  red.” 

The  goddess  must  be  regarded  as  the  consuming  fire,  as 

1 Bk.  ix,  c.  xvii. 

““Wizard-prince,”  evidently  a patron  of  sorcerers  and  cunning  work- 
manship. 

3 “ Five  House.” 


* Bk.  ii.  Appendix. 


QUAXOLOTL 


283 


is  proved  by  an  account  of  her  image  by  Duran,  representing 
her  with  open  jaws  and  hungry  fangs.  It  is  because  of  this, 
too,  that  she  came  to  be  connected  with  the  dog,1  the  biting 
animal,  and  that  her  festival  is  held  on  the  date  chicunai 
itzcuintli,  “ nine  dog.” 

She  is  further  the  volcanic  fire  which  is  hidden  in  the 
centre  of  the  earth,  and  which  was  symbolically  represented 
by  the  fire  shut  up  in  the  Milan  temple  or  sacred  edifice, 
and  this  plutonic  significance  is  perhaps  the  reason  why  the 
interpreters  speak  of  her  as  having  the  characteristics  of 
Mictlantecutli,  the  god  of  Hades  ; but  they  speak  of  her  as 
well  as  the  “ Yellow  Woman.”  Her  butterfly  names  also 
have  reference  to  the  flitting  shapes  seen  in  flame. 

She  is  the  patroness  of  chilli  pepper,  which  was  naturally 
associated  with  the  fiery  element  and  was  therefore  connected 
with  the  end  of  a period  of  fasting,  the  Mexicans  regarding 
abstinence  from  this  condiment  as  equivalent  to  a fast.  The 
myth  which  speaks  of  her  as  having  been  punished  for  eating 
fish  before  a sacrifice  is  also  eloquent  of  this  relationship, 
and  also  by  its  reference  to  her  transformation  into  canine 
form  connects  her  further  with  the  dog  and  makes  her  a 
patroness  of  the  nanualtin,  or  wizards,  who  on  the  day  itz- 
cuinM  (“  dog”)  had  especial  power  to  transform  themselves 
into  animals. 

Her  name  “ In  the  House  ” alludes,  of  course,  to  her 
character  as  a goddess  of  the  domestic  hearth.  She  was  also 
the  patroness  of  the  goldsmiths  and  jewellers  of  Xochimilco, 
who  of  all  crafts  required  the  assistance  of  her  element. 

QUAXOLOTL  = “ SPLIT  AT  THE  TOP”  (FLAME) 

Relationship  : A variant  of  Chantico. 

Festival  : Ce  xochitl,  “ one  flower.” 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

She  is  so  called  because  she  wears  Xolotl’s  decoration 
on  her  head.  The  double  face  of  Xochiquetzal  in  Codex 
Borgia  (sheet  60)  is  regarded  by  Seler  as  that  of  Quaxolotl — 

1 Sahagun  states  that  the  dog  is  the  symbol  of  fire  (bk.  iv,  c.  xxii). 


284  FIRE-GODS 

the  goddess  parting  into  two  heads.  She  is  also  the  goddess 
who  has  borne  twins. 

MATURE  AMD  STATUS 

Quaxolotl  is  a variant  of  Chantico.  The  name,  which 
signifies  “ split  at  the  top,”  seems  to  signify  the  kind  of 
flame  which  bifurcates  or  splits  into  two  tongues.  She 
is  thus  connected  with  things  double,  and  is  the  goddess 
who  has  borne  twins.  Sahagun,  who  calls  her  Quaxolotl- 
Chantico,1  thereby  identifies  her  with  that  goddess,  and  states 
that  she  was  housed  in  the  twenty-ninth  temple  in  the  great 
court  at  Mexico,  the  Tetlanman,  which  he  distinguishes 
from  that  of  Chantico  proper,  the  Tetlanman  Calmecac, 
the  twenty-seventh.  He  states  that  slaves  were  sacrificed 
here  on  the  sign  ce  xochitl,  “ one  flower,”  and  perhaps  this 
fixes  the  date  of  the  festival  of  the  goddess. 


Bk.  ii.  Appendix. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  OCTLI  OR  PULQUE  (DRINK)  GODS 

GENERAL 

Name  : Centzon  Totochtin  = “ Four  Hundred  Rabbits.” 

Area  of  WoRsnip  : Mexico  generally. 

Festival  : The  day  ome  tochtli  (“  two  rabbit  ”)  in  the  sign  ce  mazatl 
(“  one  deer  ”),  a movable  feast. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

The  constituent  elements  of  the  insignia  of  the  odli-gods 
may  be  generally  described  as  follows  : 

(1)  A two-coloured  face-painting,  the  front  half  of  the 
facial  profile  (i.e.  the  middle  part  of  the  face)  being  painted 
red  in  its  entire  length,  both  sides  at  the  temples  black  (or 
dark  green),  or  else  black  with  longish  yellow  spots. 

(2)  A nasal  plate,  handle-shaped,  the  ends  involuted 
outwardly,  or  crescent-shaped,  the  golden  Huaxtec  nose- 
ornament,  yaca-metztli . It  is  usually  marked  on  all  articles 
dedicated  to  the  odli-gods. 

(3)  A four-cornered  ear-pendant,  which  agrees  substantially 
with  that  of  the  Rain-god. 

(4)  A neck-ornament  falling  far  down,  loose  in  texture, 
made  of  malinalli  grass  fibre. 

(5)  A crown  of  heron-feathers,  such  as  is  worn  by  the 
Rain-god,  but  here  combined  with  the  cuecaluitoncatl, 
Quetzal’s  neck-ornament  made  of  dark  feathers,  with  some 
projecting  arara  plumes. 

(6)  A stone  axe  as  a weapon. 

The  most  striking  of  these  objects  are  the  first  two.  So 
characteristic  are  they  of  the  odli-gods,  that  a juxtaposition 
of  red  and  black  lines  on  a tihnatli  is  explained  in  the  Codex 

285 


286 


THE  OCTLI- GODS  (DRINK-GODS) 

Magliabecchiano  as  “ manta  de  dos  conejos ,”  or  shoulder- 
covering of  the  Two-rabbit  octli-g od.1 

ALLUSIONS  TO  THE  OCTLI -GODS  IN  GENERAL 

Sahagun,  speaking  of  the  odli-gods ,*  says  that  Tezcatzon- 
catl 5 was  the  parent  or  brother  of  the  rest,  who  were  called 
Yiauhtecatl,  Izquitecatl,  Acolua,  Tlilhua,  Patecatli,  Toltecatl, 
Papaztac,  Tlaltecayoua,  Omc  tochtli,  Tepuztecatl,  Chima- 
paleuecatl,  and  Cohuatzincatl. 

One  of  the  hymns  in  Sahagun’ s collection  alludes  as 
follows  to  the  octli- gods  : 

In  Colhuacan  in  fear 
Fear  has  his  home. 

The  God  in  the  Palace,  Tezcatzonco, 

He  was  dealt  with,  therefore  he  wept  (the  fire  wept  ?). 

Not  so,  not  so  (shall  it  be)  (saith  he) 

The  God  was  dealt  with,  therefore  he  wept. 

The  God  in  the  Palace  Axalaco, 

He  was  dealt  with,  therefore  he  wept. 

Not  so,  not  so  (shall  it  be)  (saith  he) 

The  God  was  dealt  with,  therefore  he  wept. 


I have  followed  Seler’s  translation  of  this  hymn,  but, 
like  him,  can  glean  little  from  it.  It  seems  to  me  to  allude 
vaguely  to  the  cutting  of  the  agave- plant,  and  the  consequent 
withdrawal  of  the  sap  from  which  octli  is  made. 

A report  on  the  Huaxtec  territory  dated  1579  evidently 
relates  to  the  octli-g ods.  It  states  that : 

“ They  related  another  fable,  that  they  had  two  other 
effigies  as  gods,  one  called  Ometochtli,  who  is  the  god  of 
wine  ; the  other  Tezcatlipoca,  which  is  the  name  of  the  most 
exalted  idol  worshipped  by  them,  and  with  these  they  had 
painted  the  figure  of  a woman  named  Hueytonantzin,  that 
is,  ‘ our  great  mother,’  because  they  said  she  was  the  mother 

1 The  locus  classicus  lor  representations  of  the  octli- gods  is  the  Codex  Maglia- 
becchiano, which  presents  a most  valuable  series  of  them,  pp.  49-59. 

3 Bk.  i,  c.  xxii. 

3 “ Mirror  covered  with  Straw.” 


FEAST  OF  THE  OCTLI-GODS 


287 


of  all  those  gods  or  demons.  And  those  four  above-mentioned 
male  demons,  they  related,  had  killed  this  great  mother, 
founding  with  her  the  institution  of  human  sacrifice,  and 
taking  her  heart  out  of  her  breast  and  presenting  it  to  the 
sun.  Similarly,  they  related  that  the  idol  Tezcatlipoca 
had  killed  the  god  of  wine  with  his  consent  and  concurrence, 
giving  out  that  in  this  way  he  gave  him  eternal  life,  and 
that  if  he  did  not  die,  all  persons  drinking  wine  must  die  ; 
but  that  the  death  of  this  Ometochtli  was  only  like  the 
sleep  of  one  drunk,  that  he  afterwards  recovered  and  again 
became  fresh  and  well.” 

FESTIVAL 

The  principal  festival  of  the  octli-g ods  was  ome  tochlli 
(“two  rabbit”),  and  this  calendrical  name  became  in  a 
measure  deified  as  a separate  god,  who  was  the  same  as 
Tepoxtecatl.1  Sahagun  says  of  this  festival : 

“ In  the  sign  ce  magatl,  on  the  second  day  called  ome 
tochtli,  they  made  a great  feast  to  the  god  Izquitecatl,  who 
is  the  second  god  of  wine,  and  not  only  to  him,  but  to  all 
the  gods  of  wine,  who  were  very  numerous.  They  ornamented 
his  image  in  the  temple,  offered  him  food,  and  made  songs 
and  played  on  instruments  in  his  presence.  They  placed 
a great  jar  of  octli  in  the  court  of  the  temple,  and  whoever 
wished  drank  from  it.  The  duty  of  replenishing  the  jar 
was  given  to  the  men  who  cut  the  maguey.  They  carried  to 
the  house  of  the  god  the  first-fruits  of  the  first  sap,  which 
they  drew  from  it. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS  IN  GENERAL 

When  a man  was  intoxicated  with  the  native  Mexican 
drink  of  octli,  a liquor  made  from  the  juice  of  the  Agave 
Americana,  he  was  believed  to  be  under  the  influence  of  a 
god  or  spirit.  The  commonest  form  under  which  the  Drink- 
god  was  worshipped  was  the  rabbit,  that  animal  being  con- 

1 See  Seler,  “Temple-pyramid  of  Tepoxtlan,”  Bulletin  28,  U.S.  Bureau  of 
Ethnology,  p.  349. 


288 


THE  0CTL1  -GODS  (DRINK-GODS) 

sidered  as  utterly  devoid  of  sense.  This  particular  divinity 
was  known  as  Ometochtli.  The  scale  of  debauchery  which 
it  was  desired  to  reach  was  indicated  by  the  number  of 
rabbits  worshipped,  the  highest  number,  four  hundred, 
representing  the  most  extreme  degree  of  intoxication.  The 
chief  octli-g ods  apart  from  these  were  Patecatl  and  Tequeeh- 
mecauiani.  If  the  drunkard  desired  to  escape  the  perils 
of  accidental  hanging  during  intoxication,  it  was  necessary 
to  sacrifice  to  the  latter,  but  if  death  by  drowning  was  ap- 
prehended, Teatlahuiani,  the  deity  who  hurried  drunkards 
to  a watery  grave,  was  placated.  If  the  debauchee  wished 
his  punishment  not  to  exceed  a headache,  Quatlapanqui 
(The  Head-splitter)  was  sacrificed  to,  or  else  Papaztac  (The 
Nerveless).  Each  trade  or  profession  had  its  own  Ometochtli, 
but  for  the  aristocracy  there  was  one  only  of  these  gods, 
Cohuatzincatl,a  name  signifying  “He  who  has  Grandparents.” 
Several  of  these  drink-gods  had  names  which  connected  them 
with  various  localities  ; for  example,  Tepoxtecatl  was  the 
octli- god  of  Tepoztlan.  The  calendar  day  Ometochtli, 
which  means  “ two  rabbit,”  because  of  the  symbol  which 
accompanied  it,  was  under  the  special  protection  of  these 
gods,  and  the  Mexicans  believed  that  anyone  born  on  that 
day  was  almost  inevitably  doomed  to  become  a drunkard. 
AH  the  octli-gods  -were  closely  associated  with  the  soil 
and  with  the  Earth-goddess.  After  the  Indians  had  harvested 
their  maize  they  drank  to  intoxication,  and  invoked  one  or 
other  of  these  gods.  On  the  whole  it  is  safe  to  infer  that 
they  were  originally  deities  of  local  husbandry  who  imparted 
virtue  to  the  soil  as  octli  imparted  strength  and  courage  to 
the  warrior. 

Many  of  the  titles  of  these  deities  are  derived  from  place- 
names,  as  Acolua,  Calhuatzincatl,  Chimalpanecatl,  etc.,  and 
this  widespread  denomination  would  seem  to  show  that  their 
worship  must  have  been  established  at  an  early  period,  and 
that  each  seems  to  represent  a section  of  the  population  of 
Mexico.  Their  relation  with  the  moon  is  plain — a rabbit 
dwelt  therein,  and  they  were  rabbit-gods. 

They  seem  to  have  been  connected  in  a measure  with  the 


TEZCATZONCATL 


289 


cult  of  fire.  Vetancurt  states  that  the  natives  in  his  day, 
when  they  had  brewed  the  new  octli,  and  it  was  ready  to  be 
drunk,  first  built  a fire,  walked  round  it  in  procession,  and 
threw  some  of  the  new  liquor  into  the  flames,  chanting  the 
while  an  invocation  to  Tezcatzoncatl  to  descend  and  be 
present  with  them.1  Duran  says  that  “ the  octli  was  a favour- 
ite offering  to  the  gods,  and  especially  to  the  god  of  fire.” 
Sometimes  it  was  placed  before  a fire  in  vases,  sometimes 
it  was  scattered  upon  the  flames  with  a brush,  at  other  times 
it  was  poured  out  around  the  fireplace.8  Sahagun  also  states 
that  the  liquor  was  poured  on  the  hearth  at  four  separate 
points.1  Jacinto  de  la  Serna  describes  the  same  ceremony 
as  current  in  his  day.4  The  invocation  ran : “ Shining 

Rose,  light-giving  Rose,  receive  and  rejoice  my  heart.” 

May  not  this  connexion  with  fire  have  arisen  out  of  some 
such  train  of  thought  as  connected  the  lightning  with  the 
sacred  oak  of  Zeus  ? In  his  Ascent  of  Olympus,  Dr.  Rendel 
Harris  has  shown  that  the  oak  was  regarded  as  the  “ ani- 
mistic repository  of  the  thunder,”  and  therefore  of  the 
heavenly  fire.  May  not  the  ubiquitous  and  overshadowing 
maguey- plant,  from  which  the  octli  sap  was  taken,  have  had 
a like  significance  for  the  Mexicans  ? 

The  principal  octli- gods  may  now  be  examined  more  particu- 
larly. 

TEZCATZONCATL  = “ MIRROR  COVERED  WITH 

STRAW  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Chichimec  territory. 

Relationship  : Husband  of  Coatlicue. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

A stone  figure  of  this  god  from  Tacubaya  shows  him  in 
the  recumbent  position  often  observed  in  the  statues  of  the 
octli-g ods,  and  holding  a large  octli  jar  on  his  stomach.  A 
headdress  resembling  that  of  an  Arab  covers  the  head,  and 
from  underneath  it  descend  the  strands  of  what  seems  to 

1 Teatro  Mexicana,  tom.  i. 

3 Bk.  i,  c.  xiii. 

19 


3 Hist,  delos  Indios,  tom.  ii,  p.  240. 
* Manuel  de  los  Ministros,  p.  35. 


290  THE  OCTL/-GODS  (DRINK-GODS) 

be  a wig.  What  appears  to  be  a serpent  motif,  the  ends  of 
which  are  square  in  form,  encircles  the  eyes  almost  like  a 
pair  of  spectacles,  and  he  wears  the  usual  lunar  nose-plug 
of  the  octli  deities.  An  elaborate  necklace,  wristlets,  and 
leg-pieces  of  precious  stones  are  worn,  and  the  underside  of 
the  statue  is  incised  to  represent  the  ripples  of  water  and  is 
covered  with  representations  of  marine  animals  and  shells. 

MYTH 

A passage  in  a report  on  the  Huaxtec  territory,  dated 
1579,  states  that  Tezcatzoncatl  was  killed  and  revived  by 
Tezcatlipoca,  by  which  act  the  drunkard’s  sleep  became 
harmless  in  the  future  for  men.  The  passage  runs  : 

“ They  related  that  the  idol  Tezcatlipoca  had  killed  the 
god  of  wine  with  his  consent  and  concurrence,  giving  out 
that  in  this  way  he  gave  him  eternal  life,  and  that  if  he  did 
not  die,  all  persons  drinking  wine  must  die  ; but  that  the 
death  of  this  Ometochtli  was  only  like  the  sleep  of  one 
drunk,  that  he  afterwards  recovered  and  again  became  fresh 
and  well.” 

FESTIVALS 

Allusion  is  made  to  Vetancurt’s  mention  of  a special 
ceremony  to  Tezcatzoncatl  on  the  preceding  page. 

PRIESTHOOD 

Sahagun  says  1 that  a priest  called  by  the  same  name 
as  the  god  was  charged  with  the  preparations  for  the  festival 
of  tepeilhuitl,  in  which  four  victims,  one  of  whom  bore  the 
name  of  Mayauel,  an  orth'-goddess,  were  slain.  (See  Tlaloc — 
Festivals.) 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Tezcatzoncatl  appears  to  have  been  the  god  of  intoxication 
par  excellence,  father  of  the  other  octli-g ods,  to  whom  special 
invocation  was  made  when  the  new  liquor  was  brewed. 

1 Bk.  i,  Appendix. 


TEPOXTECATL 


291 


TEPOXTECATL  = “ HE  OF  THE  AXE  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : 

Chichimec  quarter  of  Aniantlan,  Mexico. 

Tepoxtlan  in  Cuernavaca. 

Symbol  : The  copper  axe. 

APPEARANCE  AND  INSIGNIA 

In  the  Codex  Magliabecchiano,  Tepoxtecatl  is  pictured  as 
wearing  the  peculiar  nose-plug  of  the  octli-gods,  the  motif 
of  which  reappears  on  his  shield.  He  is  crowned  with  a 
'panache  from  which  leaves  sprout,  and  lunar  and  stellar 
symbols  appear  here  and  there  in  his  insignia.  He  carries 
the  copper  axe  symbolical  of  the  octli-gods,  and  wears  the 
malinalli  herb  necklace. 

TEMPLE 

The  best-known  temple  of  Tepoxtecatl  is  that  at  Tepoxtlan 
so  fully  described  by  Seler  (see  Bulletin  28  of  U.S.  Bureau 
of  Ethnology,  pp.  341  ff .),  and  Professor  Marshall  H.  Saville 
( Proc . of  Amer.  Assoc,  for  the  Advancement  of  Sciences,  vol. 
viii  of  the  Bulletins  of  the  American  Museum  of  Natural 
History). 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Tepoxtecatl  was  the  octli-god  of  the  Chichimec  people 
of  the  quarter,  or  barrio,  of  Amantlan,  in  the  city  of  Mexico- 
Tenochtitlan.  His  idol  was  placed  beside  that  of  others 
in  the  holy  place  of  that  quarter,  which  boasted  another 
octli-god,  Macuil  tochtli.  One  of  the  captives  slain  in  the 
month  tepeilhuitli,  at  the  temple  called  Centzon  totochtin 
inteopan,  was  named  after  him.  The  interpreter  of  the 
Codex  Magliabecchiano,  speaking  of  Tepoxtecatl,  says : 
“ This  is  the  representative  of  a great  iniquity  which  was 
the  custom  in  a village  named  Tepoxtlan  ; namely  when  an 
Indian  died  in  a state  of  intoxication  the  others  of  this  village 
made  a great  feast  to  him,  holding  in  their  hands  copper 
axes,  which  were  used  to  fell  wood.” 


292  THE  0CTL1- GODS  (DRINK-GODS) 

The  question  arises  : in  what  manner  was  the  axe  connected 
with  the  octli- god  ? The  axe  is,  of  course,  the  implement 
of  the  Tlaloque,  or  rain-gods,  and  of  the  Chac,  or  rain-gods 
of  Yucatan.  Therefore,  I take  it,  the  axe  of  Tepoxtecatl 
gives  him  a certain  pluvial  significance,  which  the  octli- 
gods  as  strengthened  of  the  soil,  the  deities  who  gave  “ cour- 
age ” to  the  earth,  undoubtedly  possessed. 

PATECATL  = “ HE  FROM  THE  LAND  OF  THE 
MEDICINES  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Originally  the  Huaxtec  country. 

Relationship  : Husband  of  Mayauel. 

Calendar  Place : 

Lord  of  the  twelfth  day,  malinalli. 

Lord  of  the  eleventh  “ week,”  ce  ozomatli. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  57 : He  sits  opposite  Tlazolteotl 
and  wears  a crescent-shaped  Huaxtec  nasal  ornament,  and 
on  his  breast  a remarkable  comma-shaped  curved  ornament 
which  is,  perhaps,  a piece  of  a large  spiral  snail’s  shell,  and 
which  is  peculiar  to  Patecatl  and  Tlazolteotl.  He  has  the 
half-black,  half-light  face  of  the  octli -gods.  He  wears  Quet- 
zalcoatl’s  fan-like  nape  adornment,  the  fillet  of  unspun  cotton 
distinctive  of  Tlazolteotl,  and  an  ear-plug  of  the  same  material. 
He  holds  a stone  hatchet,  which  is  the  symbol  and  weapon 
of  the  octli-g ods,  painted  blue  to  indicate  nephrite  or  some 
such  stone.  Sheet  13  : He  wears  a fillet  which  affects  the 

form  of  the  Mexican  royal  crown,  consisting  of  white  fur 
with  an  ape’s  head  set  on  the  frontal  side,  evidently  a bar- 
baric ornament  peculiar  to  the  district  whence  he  came. 

Codex  Fejervary-Mayer. — Sheet  35  : Here  he  wears  a wedge- 
shaped  Huaxtec  cap,  painted  blue  and  red,  and  a disk-shaped 
shell  on  his  breast.  His  earring  is  formed  of  a trapeze-and- 
ray  motif,  like  those  on  the  stone  head  of  Coyolxauhqui.  The 
ends  of  his  loin-cloth  are  rounded  like  Quetzalcoatl’s.  Sheet 
90 : He  wears  a breast-ornament  consisting  of  a black, 

leaf-shaped,  obsidian  knife. 


TEPOXTECATL. 

(From  Codes  Magliabecchiano,  1 fol.,  sheet  37.) 


THE  OCTLI  GODS. 


•2921 


MYTHS  OF  PATECATL 


293 


Aubin  Tonalamatl. — He  holds  in  his  left  hand  some  spikes 
of  the  agai>e-leaf,and  in  his  right  hand  Quetzalcoatl’s  throwing- 
stick,  which  is  involuted  snail-fashion  at  the  end  and  painted 
with  a stellar  design.  An  eagle  and  jaguar  stand  before  him 
holding  paper  flags,  these  symbols  of  the  warrior  signifying 
the  courage-giving  nature  of  octli  drink.  They  are  in  sacri- 
ficial array,  with  the  sacrificial  cord  round  their  necks  and 
the  sacrificial  flag  in  their  claws.  The  half-night  and  half- 
day symbol  is  above  them,  signifying  the  time  of  the  octli 
orgies. 

Codex  Magliabecchiano. — Instead  of  the  stone  axe  he  holds 
in  his  hand  Quetzalcoatl’s  throwing-stick,  and  also  wears 
his  shell  breastplate. 

MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A says  : “ Pate- 
catl  was  the  husband  of  Mayaguil  (Mayauel),  the  woman  with 
four  hundred  breasts,  who  was  metamorphosed  into  the  maguei 
plant  or  vine,  and  was  properly  the  root  which  they  put 
into  the  water  or  wine  which  distils  from  the  maguei  in  order 
to  make  it  ferment.  And  the  unhappy  man  to  whose  indus- 
try the  art  of  making  wine  by  causing  fermentation  by  means 
of  this  root  was  due,  was  afterwards  worshipped  as  a god.” 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  states 
that : “ Patecatle  was  the  god  of  these  thirteen  days,  and  of 
a kind  of  root  which  they  put  into  wine  (the  opactli  or  peyote) ; 
since  without  this  root  no  quantity  of  wine,  no  matter  how 
much  they  drank,  would  produce  intoxication.  Patecatle 
taught  them  the  art  of  making  wine,  for  wine  was  made 
according  to  his  instructions  ; and  as  men  when  under  the 
influence  of  wine  are  valiant,  so  they  supposed  that  those 
who  were  born  during  this  period  would  be  courageous. 
They  considered  these  thirteen  days  all  as  fortunate,  for 
Patecatle,  the  god  of  wine,  the  husband  of  Mayaquel,  who  was 
otherwise  called  Cipaquetona,  he  who  was  saved  from  the 
deluge,  ruled  over  them.  They  placed  the  eagle  and  the  lion 
near  him  as  a sign  that  their  sons  would  be  valiant  men.” 


294  THE  OCTLI-GODS  (DRINK-GODS) 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Patecatl  was  originally  a Huaxtec  god.  Tradition  said 
that  the  tribal  ancestor  of  this  people  was  the  first  drunkard. 
In  the  Sahagun  MS.  Patecatl  is  called  “ the  finder  of  the 
stalks  and  roots  of  which  octli  is  made,”  that  is  those  roots 
which  were  added  to  the  octli  to  enhance  its  intoxicating  or 
narcotic  strength.  Motolinia  states  that  those  roots  were 
called  oc-patli  or  octli- medicine,  and  the  interpreter  of  the 
Codex  Magliabecchiano  confirms  the  passage,  as  do  the  inter- 
preters of  the  Codex  Vaticanns  A and  the  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis. 

I fail  to  find  corroboration  elsewhere  of  the  interpreter’s 
statement  that  Patecatl  was  “ saved  from  the  deluge.” 
He  seems  to  me  to  bear  a general  resemblance  to  Apollo, 
as  recently  explained  by  Dr.  Rendel  Harris,1  that  is,  he  seems 
to  have  been  named  in  accordance  with  some  conception  of 
him  in  which  he  was  thought  of  as  coming  from  a “ Land 
of  Medicines  ” (in  his  case  the  Huaxtec  country,  which  was 
also  the  Tlillan  Tlapallan,  the  “Land  of  Writing”  or  of 
Civilization).  The  herbal  conception  of  many  Greek  and 
other  deities — that  is,  their  actual  development  from  plants, 
the  evolution  of  the  god  from  the  medicinal  herb — is  now  well 
authenticated,  as  can  be  seen  from  a perusal  of  Dr.  Harris’s 
remarkable  work.  Nor  is  the  proven  development  of  many 
deities  from  mineral  substances  any  less  remarkable. 

MAYAUEL  = “ SHE  OF  THE  MAGUEY-YLANT” 

Minor  Names  : 

Ce  Quauhtli  = “ One  Eagle.” 

Cipactonal  = “ Cipactli  Sun.” 

Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  eighth  day,  tochtli  ; of  the  eighth  week, 
ce  malinalli. 

Symbols  : The  agave- plant  ; the  octli  jug  or  vase. 

Compass  Direction  : The  lower  region,  or  south. 

Relationship  : One  of  the  octli- gods  and  the  Tzitzimime  ; wife  of 
Patecatl. 

1 In  The  Ascent  of  Olympus. 


INSIGNIA  OF  MAYAUEL 


295 


ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  12  : She  is  painted  yellow,  the 
women’s  colour,  and  is  seen  issuing  from  an  agave- plant.  In 
sheet  16  she  has  the  general  aspect  of  Tlazolteotl,  and  her 
hair  is  bound  up  with  a band  of  unspun  cotton,  a plug  of 
which  also  hangs  from  her  ear.  About  the  mouth  she  is  painted 
with  black  rubber,  and  as  a nasal  ornament  wears  the  golden 
crescent.  Her  face  is  white,  and  her  tippet  and  skirt  are 
painted  in  the  semblance  of  water  and  both  garments  have 
a fringe  of  snail-shells.  She  suckles  a fish.  Sheet  68:  In  this 
place  she  is  represented  as  ruler  of  the  eighth  week.  She 
has  a two-coloured  face-painting,  the  upper  half  yellow, 
and  the  lower  green  or  blue.  The  octli  colour  is  represented 
in  her  garments,  which  are  white.  In  the  pictures  of  the 
Borgia  group  generally  she  is  shown  wearing  the  blue 
indented  nose-plate  which  is  assigned  to  Xochiquetzal.  In 
Codex  Borgia  generally  she  wears  as  a back-device  a quemitl 
after  the  style  of  Tlaloc,  but  coloured  white  and  blue  or  green. 
On  her  flame-coloured  locks  she  sometimes  wears  a jewelled 
chain  with  a conventional  bird’s  head  decorating  the  front 
of  it,  while  the  feather-tuft  on  her  head  resembles  that  worn 
by  the  Sun-god  in  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  15),  and  is  intended  to 
symbolize  the  fiery  nature  of  the  octli  liquor. 

Aiibin  Tonalamatl. — Sheet  8 : She  is  painted  the  colour 
of  the  Maize-goddess  and  her  maidens — red.  As  a headdress 
she  wears  a bandage  with  a neck-loop  formed  and  coloured 
like  that  of  the  goddess  Chalchihuitlicue,  and  connected  with 
a high  crown.  She  bears  a copal  incense  bag. 

Codex  Vaticanus  A. — She  is  shown  with  the  upper  half  of 
her  face  yellow  and  the  lower  blue,  thus  depicting  the  typical 
two-coloured  face-painting  of  the  octli-g ods.  On  her  head 
she  wears  the  characteristic  octli-g od’s  headdress,  also  worn 
by  Tlaloc,  and  holds  a drinking- vessel  brimming  with  octli. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — Her  face  is  blue  with  a few  oblique 
lines  after  the  style  of  the  warrior’s  face-paint.  She  wears 
as  a headdress  a bandage  of  unspun  cotton  (usually  the 
characteristic  of  Tlazolteotl),  spindles  in  her  hair,  a quail’s 
wing  and  long  plumes  of  a yellow  colour.  In  her  hand  she 


296 


THE  OCTL/-GODS  (DRINK-GODS) 

bears  a bunch  of  octli- wort,  a root  which,  if  added  to  the 
agave  liquor,  makes  its  powers  of  intoxication  more  potent. 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheets  31  and  89  : She  is  represented 
wearing  the  headdress  typical  of  Tlaloc  and  of  the  octli  - 
gods — a bandage  coloured  white  and  blue,  with  knots  to 
the  right  and  left,  which  leaves  these  tips  or  tippets  sticking 
out.  Two  large  white  and  blue  rosettes  with  similarly  coloured 
tassels  depend  by  strings  from  the  right  and  left  of  this 
bandage. 

Codex  Fejtrvary-Mayer : Sheet  28:  Clothed  in  a yellow- 
striped  tippet  like  that  of  Chalchihuitlicue,  with  a border 
painted  in  the  colours  of  the  jewel,  she  lies  in  her  agave- plant. 
She  is  crowned  with  a wreath  of  flowers  and  wears  a blue 
skirt. 

Codex  Laud. — Sheet  9 : The  agave-plant  rises  from  a turtle 
resting  upon  a dragon.  Adjacent  to  this  lie  a copper  hatchet 
and  a throwing-weapon,  while  in  her  hand  she  holds  an  octli 
bowl  ornamented  with  gems  and  flowers. 

Secondary  Aspects. — She  is  very  often  suggested  by  the 
octli  jug,  which  in  the  Borgia  group  is  represented  as  a big 
two-handed  vessel  standing  on  serpentine  coils,  while  to  it 
are  attached  votive  papers  of  the  type  frequently  offered 
to  the  Tlaloque,  and  bannerets  are  placed  on  the  sides,  on 
which  the  V-shaped  point  is  depicted.  The  night-and-day 
symbol  surmounts  the  whole.  Though  she  is  spoken  of 
as  having  many  breasts,  the  goddess  is  very  rarely  depicted 
in  this  manner. 


MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A says  of  her  : 

“ They  feign  that  Mayaguil  was  a woman  with  four  hundred 
breasts,  and  that  the  gods  on  account  of  her  fruitfulness 
changed  her  into  the  maguei,  from  which  they  make  wine.” 
He  also  speaks  of  her  as  the  mother  of  Cinteotl,  remarking 
that  all  the  gods  had  their  origin  from  the  vine  which  bears 
the  grape  (the  maguey- plant). 

The  third  interpreter  of  Codex  T elleriano-Remensis  calls 


TOLTECATL 


297 


her  “ Mayaquel,  who  was  otherwise  called  Cipaquetona  ” 
(Cipactonal),  and  wife  of  Patecatl. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Mayauel,  as  her  name  implies,  is  primarily  a deity  of  the 
maguey -plaxit.  But  evidence  is  not  wanting  that  she  also 
partakes  of  the  nature  of  the  Earth-goddess,  as  her  occasional 
appearance  in  the  insignia  of  Tlazolteotl  and  her  wearing 
of  the  colours  of  the  Maize-goddess  would  seem  to  show. 
As  the  wife  of  Patecatl,  the  god  “ from  the  land  of  medicines,” 
she  bears  the  ropes  which  symbolize  the  octli- wort,  the  plant 
which  gave  a narcotic  quality  to  the  octli  drink,  and  which 
was  thought  of  as  strangling  or  choking  the  drunkard.  Her 
bounteousness  of  fertility  was  symbolized  by  the  possession 
of  four  hundred  breasts,  and  in  this  she  resembles  the  old 
mother-goddess  of  Asia  Minor.  She  has  also  affinities  writh 
Xochiquetzal  and  Cipactonal. 

TOTOLTECATL  = “ HE  OF  TOLL  AN  ” 
Relationship  : One  of  the  octli- gods. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS.  ( Biblioteca  del  Palacio). — The  deity  wears  a 
paper  crown  surmounted  by  a 'panache  of  heron-feathers  and  a 
nose-plug  like  that  worn  by  the  other  octli-g ods.  His  wig  or 
hair  falls  over  his  shoulders.  The  upper  part  of  his  body  is 
nude,  but  he  wears  a red-bordered  cloth  round  the  head.  His 
shield  is  a peculiar  one,  and  Sahagun  calls  it  a “ shield  of  the 
boat.”  In  shape  it  is  almost  like  a modern  door,  and  from 
it  depends  what  seem  to  be  paper  strips.  He  wears  bands 
of  some  textile  material,  which  are  tied  behind  with  knots 
round  the  leg,  and  he  is  shod  with  sandals.  In  his  hand  he 
carries  the  obsidian  axe  typical  of  the  octli- gods.  Lie  seems 
to  have  been  a drink-god  of  the  Toltecs. 

MACUILTOCHTLI  = “ FIVE  RABBIT  ” 

■v 

Area  : Mexico. 

Compass  Direction  : West. 


298  THE  0CTL1- GODS  (DRINK-GODS) 

Symbol  : Five  tochtli  sign. 

Relationship  : One  of  the  Uitznaua. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

General. — In  both  Codex  Vaticanus  B and  Codex  Borgia 
he  is  painted  a yellow  colour,  but  in  Borgia  very  deep  yellow, 
almost  brown,  to  distinguish  the  rectangularly  bordered 
yellow  field  which  is  seen  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  eye,  and 
is  characteristic  of  all  the  gods  of  the  “ Macuil  ” series.  In 
Codex  Vaticanus  B this  process  is  reversed,  the  yellow  field 
being  painted  a darker,  greyer  shade.  In  this  MS.,  too, 
the  god  resembles  Macuil  Cozcaquauhtli,  but  has  a bundle 
of  stone  knives  before  his  mouth,  and  he  wears  at  the  frontal 
side  of  the  head-fillet  a flower,  from  which  stone  knives 
project.  On  his  breast  is  seen  the  eye,  the  original  form  of 
Tezcatlipoca’s  white  ring,  and  on  his  upper  arm  he  has  a 
large  armlet,  painted  a blue  colour. 

Sahagun  MS. — The  Sahagun  MS.  describes  him  as  having 
the  hand  motif  in  the  region  of  the  mouth.  On  the  head  is  a 
feather  helmet  surmounted  by  a comb  of  feathers,  and  he 
wears  a necklet  of  animal  claws.  A red-bordered  cloth  is 
twisted  round  the  hips.  The  sandals  are  white.  The  shield, 
which  is  described  as  a “ sun-shield,”  is  red,  and  has  claw 
ornaments.  The  god  carries  an  obsidian  axe,  and  a staff 
with  a heart  inset  and  painted  with  quetzal- feathers. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

From  his  possession  of  the  hand-symbol  in  the  region  of  the 
mouth,  Macuiltochtli,  the  “ Five  Rabbit,”  seems  to  me  to 
be  in  some  measure  equated  with  the  gods  Macuilxochitl 
and  Xolotl,  and  thus  partakes  with  them  of  the  quality  of  a 
deity  of  pleasure  and  conviviality. 

TOTOCIITIN 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS. — The  face  is  painted  in  two  different  colours, 
and  the  head  is  surmounted  by  a crown  of  feathers.  The  god 


Mayauel.  (From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  16.) 


THE  OCTH-GODS. 


298] 


TOMIAUHTECUTLI 


299 


wears  the  half-moon  nose-plug  of  the  octli-g ods,  and  an  ear- 
plug made  of  paper.  On  his  back  he  wears  the  wing  of  the 
red  guacamayo,  and  he  has  a feather  collar.  A net  cloth 
decorated  with  the  figures  of  scorpions  is  hung  round  his 
hips.  On  his  feet  he  wears  bells  and  shells,  and  the  sandals 
peculiar  to  the  octli- gods.  The  shield  common  to  the  octli- 
gods  hangs  on  his  arm,  and  he  carries  in  his  hand  the  obsidian 
or  copper  axe  with  which  they  are  usually  represented. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Sahagun  (bk.  i,  c.  xii)  alludes  to  Totochtin  as  “ the  god  of 
wine.”  He  seems  to  me  to  be  a personification  of  the  Centzon 
Totochtin  (four  hundred  or  “ innumerable  ” octli-g  ods),  a 
figure  in  which  the  entire  body  of  drink-gods  seem  to  have 
become  merged  in  the  Aztec  mind. 

TOMIAUHTECUTLI  = “ LORD  OF  THE  MAIZE- 
FLOWER” 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS. — The  god  is  painted  black  and  on  his  face 
is  a plaster  of  salvia  chia.  He  wears  a crown  of  paper  and 
another  of  heron-feathers,  variegated  with  plumes  of  the 
quetzal.  Around  his  shoulders  is  cast  a band  of  paper,  and 
his  loin-cloth  is  of  the  same  material.  On  his  feet  he  wears 
shells  and  white  sandals.  His  shield  is  decorated  with  a 
water-rose,  and  in  his  hand  he  bears  a rush-staff. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

This  god  was  connected  with  the  flowering  of  the  maize, 
on  which  occasion,  during  the  month  tepeilhuitl,  octli  was 
drunk  and  his  festival  celebrated.  (See  Sahagun,  Appendix 
to  bk.  ii.) 


CHAPTER  IX 


STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 

TONATIUH  = “ THE  SUN  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Plateau  of  Anahuac. 

Minor  Names  : 

Piltzintecutli  = “ Young  Prince.” 

Totec  = “ Our  Chief.” 

Xipilli  = “ The  Turquoise  Prince.” 

Calendar  Place  : 

Third  of  the  nine  lords  of  the  night. 

Ruler  of  the  nineteenth  day-count,  quiauitl. 

Ruler  of  the  day-sign  ce  xochitl. 

Compass  Direction  : Upper  region  ; the  heavens  ; lord  of  the  east. 
Symbol  : The  sun-disk,  which  he  usually  wears  as  a back-ornament. 
Festivals  : The  fourth  day,  nauollin,  in  the  sign  ce  ocelotl  (movable 
feast). 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  9 : His  nose-plug  has  the  colours  of 
the  chalchihuitl.  The  ornament  attached  to  the  nape  and 
back  is  a large  rosette  or  disk  painted  in  the  chalchihuitl 
colours,  as  is  the  wrap  which  falls  over  the  back.  The  ends 
of  the  loin-cloth  also  show  the  elements  of  this  hieroglyph, 
and  such  a loin-cloth  painting  was  usually  indicative  of  the 
rank  of  the  wearer  in  ancient  Mexico.  On  his  breast  is  a 
large  gold  disk.  From  his  hollow  ear-plug  depends  a jewelled 
band,  and  his  collar  consists  of  a solar  disk  (?).  Sheet  70  : in 
this  picture  he  is  seated  on  a platform  covered  with  a jaguar- 
skin.  His  face-paint  and  body-paint  are  yellow,  with  a rect- 
angular stripe  from  the  end  of  the  nose-plug  and  above  the 
eye  across  the  forehead.  His  hair  or  wig  is  yellow,  and  is 
held  by  a jewelled  band  ornamented  with  a bird’s  head.  His 

300 


(From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  70.) 


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nritinfliftWiTifi>iiiiiiinw»fTTp''> 


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WWWAVW W5VW(r^  tua  mi  u-^wWWWWWlW 

MEXICAN'  IDEA  OF  SACRIFICE  TO  THE  SUN-GOD. 


1 301 


INSIGNIA  OF  TONATIUII 


301 


headdress  is  further  equipped  with  eagle’s  feathers,  and  three 
tasselled  cords  edged  with  cotton  hang  from  it.  On  his 
breast  lies  the  solar  disk.  The  head  of  a grey  parrot  protrudes 
from  his  back,  and  on  the  face  is  a small  red  disk.  Sheet  14  : 
Here  he  is  depicted  as  a red  Tezcatlipoca  with  the  face-paint 
of  the  Sun-god,  but  is  without  the  small  red  disk  on  the  face, 
having  instead  the  small,  four-cornered  white-and-red  patch 
characteristic  of  the  Maize-god,  of  Xochipilli  and  Tona- 
catecutli. 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  20:  Here  he  is  painted  with 
flame-coloured  hair,  bound  by  a fillet,  on  the  front  of  which 
is  the  usual  bird’s-head  ornament.  His  panache  consists 
chiefly  of  two  eagle’s  feathers,  from  which  hang  two  long 
bands,  one  side  of  which  is  hairy  as  if  formed  of  skin,  and  this 
may  be  taken  as  a characteristic  sign  of  him  in  the  MSS. 
of  the  Codex  Borgia  group.  His  nose-plug  has  a plate  de- 
pending from  it,  which  falls  over  the  mouth,  as  in  some  repre- 
sentations of  Tezcatlipoca,  and  on  his  breast  he  wears  an 
ornament  which  recalls  that  worn  by  the  Fire-god  in  this 
codex.  In  this  MS.,  as  in  Codex  Borgia,  he  is  represented  as 
standing  before  a temple,  with  a burnt-offering  of  wood  and 
rubber  in  his  hand,  and  here  the  temple  is  painted  in  the 
chalchihuitl  colour-elements,  and  its  roof  covered  by  jewelled 
disks.  Sheet  94 : In  this  picture  he  is  shown  as  wearing 
a long,  flame-like  beard,  which  strongly  resembles  that  worn 
by  Quetzalcoatl  and  Tonacatecutli  in  some  MSS.,  save  that 
it  is  the  colour  of  fire. 

Aubin-Gouyil  Tonalamatl. — Sheet  10  : In  this  manuscript 
the  upper  portion  of  the  face  is  light  red,  and  the  lower  a 
darker  red.  The  outer  corner  of  the  eye  is  encircled  by  three 
red  lines,  which  are  rounded.  He  wears  a jewelled  fillet, 
feathered  crown,  collar,  breast-ornament,  butterfly’s  wing 
neck-ornament,  the  net-pouch  of  the  hunting  tribes,  and  the 
sword-fish  pattern  sword. 

Codex  Telleriano-Re?nensis. — The  face  is  yellow  with  no 
lines.  He  wears  the  fillet  with  turquoise  jewels,  and  a wheel- 
shaped ornament  at  the  nape  of  the  neck,  probably  symbolic 
of  the  solar  disk.  Elsewhere  in  this  MS.  he  is  red,  wears  the 


302  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


solar  disk  on  his  back,  and  holds  the  cotinga  bird  in  one  hand 
and  a shield  and  a bundle  of  spears  in  the  other. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — The  face  is  half  yellow,  half  red,  and 
is  surmounted  by  a flame-coloured  wig  bound  by  the  jewelled 
fillet  with  its  usual  ornament.  Elsewhere  in  this  codex 
he  represents  the  sun  by  night,  with  the  body  and  upper 
part  of  the  face  dark,  no  nasal  rod,  but  a crescent  like  that 
of  the  Earth-goddess  and  the  octli-g ods.  The  sea-snail’s 
shell  is  above  him,  and  the  symbol  of  the  eye  in  a dark  patch. 

General. — As  second  member  of  the  third  row  in  Codex 
Borgia,  Vaticanus  B,  and  Fej ervary-Mayer,  he  is  recognized 
by  his  red  body  and  face-painting,  and  flame-coloured  hair 
bound  up  by  a jewelled  chain  or  strap,  with  the  conventional 
bird  figure  on  the  frontal  side. 

WALL-PAINTINGS 

Several  lively  paintings  decorate  the  friezes  executed  on 
the  walls  of  the  palaces  at  Mitla,  where  the  insignia  of  the  god 
are  given  in  the  manner  familiar  throughout  Mexico.  The 
fillet  with  the  bird’s-head  frontal  ornament,  the  peculiar 
disposition  of  the  'panache,  and  the  necklace  typical  of  the 
deity  are  all  reproduced,  and  here  serve  to  prove  the  wide- 
spread character  of  his  worship. 

MYTHS 

The  myths  dealing  with  the  origin  of  the  sun  and  the 
several  epochs  in  which  he  reappeared  under  different  forms 
have  already  been  given  in  the  chapter  on  Cosmogony,  and 
in  the  precis  of  the  opening  chapters  of  the  Historia  de  los 
Mexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas.  The  myths  relating  to  his 
paradise  have  also  been  dealt  with  in  that  chapter. 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A says: 

“ It  was  Tonatiuh  they  affirm  who  conducted  to  heaven 
the  souls  of  those  alone  who  died  in  war  ; and  on  this  account 
they  paint  him  with  these  arms  in  his  hands.  He  sits  as  a 
conqueror,  exactly  opposite  to  the  other  who  is  near  him, 
who  is  god  of  hell.  They  allege  that  the  cause  of  winter  being 


SUN-FESTIVALS 


303 


so  disagreeable  is  the  absence  of  the  sun,  and  that  summer 
is  delightful  on  account  of  its  presence  ; and  that  the  return 
of  the  sun  from  our  zenith  is  nothing  more  than  the  approach 
of  their  god  to  confer  his  favours  on  them.” 

FESTIVALS 

Nauollin. — One  of  the  feasts  of  the  Sun-god  was  held  at 
the  ceremony  known  as  nauollin  (the  “ four  motions,”  alluding 
to  the  quivering  appearance  of  the  sun’s  rays)  in  the  Quauh- 
quauhtinchan  (House  of  the  Eagles),  an  armoury  set  apart 
for  the  military  order  of  that  name.  The  warriors  gathered 
in  this  hall  for  the  purpose  of  dispatching  a messenger 
to  their  lord  the  sun.  High  up  on  the  wall  of  the  principal 
court  was  a great  symbolic  representation  of  the  orb,  painted 
upon  a brightly  coloured  cotton  hanging.  Before  this  copal 
and  other  fragrant  gums  and  spices  were  burned  four  times 
a day.  The  victim,  a war-captive,  was  placed  at  the  foot 
of  a long  staircase  leading  up  to  the  stone  on  which  he  was 
to  be  sacrificed.  He  was  clothed  in  red  striped  with  white 
and  wore  white  plumes  in  his  hair — colours  symbolical  of 
the  sun — while  he  bore  a staff  decorated  with  feathers  and 
a shield  covered  with  tufts  of  cotton.  He  also  carried  a 
bundle  of  eagle’s  feathers  and  some  paint  on  his  shoulders, 
to  enable  the  sun,  to  whom  he  was  the  emissary,  to  paint 
his  face.  He  was  then  addressed  by  the  officiating  priest 
in  the  following  terms  : “ Sir,  we  pray  you  go  to  our  god  the 
sun,  and  greet  him  on  our  behalf ; tell  him  that  his  sons  and 
warriors  and  chiefs  and  those  who  remain  here  beg  of  him 
to  remember  them  and  to  favour  them  from  that  place  where 
he  is,  and  to  receive  this  small  offering  which  we  send  him. 
Give  him  the  staff  to  help  him  on  his  journey,  and  this  shield 
for  his  defence,  and  all  the  rest  that  you  have  in  this  bundle.” 
The  victim,  having  undertaken  to  carry  the  message  to  the 
Sun-god,  was  then  dispatched  upon  his  long  journey. 

Ome  acall  or  Toxiuhilyilia. — This  great  solar  festival  was 
celebrated  once  in  fifty-two  years  only,  and  signified  the 
“ binding  of  the  years,”  the  end  of  the  solar  cycle,  when,  it 
was  believed,  the  “ old  ” sun  died  and  a new  luminary 


304  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


would  take  its  place,  or  the  world  would  be  plunged  into 
darkness.  Says  Clavigero : 

“ The  festival,  which  was  celebrated  every  fifty-two  years, 
was  by  far  the  most  splendid  and  most  solemn,  not  only 
among  the  Mexicans,  but  likewise  among  all  the  nations 
of  that  empire,  or  who  were  neighbouring  to  it.  On  the  last 
night  of  their  century,  they  extinguished  the  fire  of  all  the 
temples  and  houses,  and  broke  their  vessels,  earthen  pots, 
and  other  kitchen  utensils,  preparing  themselves  in  this 
manner  for  the  end  of  the  world  which  at  the  termination 
of  each  century  [sic]  they  expected  with  terror.  The  priests, 
clothed  in  various  dresses  and  ensigns  of  their  gods  and  ac- 
companied by  a vast  crowd  of  people,  issued  from  the  temples 
out  of  the  city,  directing  their  way  towards  the  mountain 
Huixachtla,  near  to  the  city  of  Itztapalapan,  upwards  of 
six  miles  distant  from  the  capital.  They  regulated  their 
journey  in  some  measure  by  observation  of  the  stars,  in 
order  that  they  might  arrive  at  the  mountain  a little  before 
midnight,  on  the  top  of  which  the  new  fire  was  to  be  kindled. 
In  the  meantime  the  people  remained  in  the  utmost  suspense 
and  solicitude,  hoping  on  the  one  hand  to  find  from  the  new 
fire  a new  century  granted  to  mankind,  and  fearing  on  the 
other  hand  the  total  destruction  of  mankind  if  the  fire  by 
divine  interference  should  not  be  permitted  to  kindle.  Hus- 
bands covered  the  faces  of  their  pregnant  wives  with  the 
leaves  of  the  aloe,  and  shut  them  up  in  granaries  ; because 
they  were  afraid  that  they  would  be  converted  into  wild 
beasts  and  would  devour  them.  They  also  covered  the  faces 
of  children  in  that  way,  and  did  not  allow  them  to  sleep, 
to  prevent  their  being  transformed  into  mice.  All  those  who 
did  not  go  out  with  the  priests  mounted  upon  terraces,  to 
observe  from  thence  the  event  of  the  ceremony.  The  office 
of  kindling  the  fire  on  this  occasion  belonged  exclusively 
to  a priest  of  Copolco,  one  of  the  districts  of  the  city.  The 
instruments  for  this  purpose  were,  as  we  have  already  men- 
tioned, two  pieces  of  wood,  and  the  place  on  which  the  fire 
was  produced  from  them  was  the  breast  of  some  brave 
prisoner  whom  they  sacrificed.  As  soon  as  the  fire  was 


THE  SUN-GOD 


305 


kindled  they  all  at  once  exclaimed  with  joy  ; and  a great 
fire  was  made  on  the  mountain  that  it  might  be  seen  from  afar, 
in  which  they  afterwards  burned  the  victim  whom  they  had 
sacrificed.  Immediately  they  took  up  portions  of  the  sacred 
fire  and  strove  with  each  other  who  should  carry  it  most 
speedily  to  their  houses.  The  priests  carried  it  to  the  greater 
temple  of  Mexico,  from  whence  all  the  inhabitants  of  that 
capital  were  supplied  with  it.  During  the  thirteen  days 
which  followed  the  renewal  of  the  fire,  which  were  the  inter- 
calary days,  interposed  between  the  past  and  ensuing  century 
to  adjust  the  year  with  the  course  of  the  sun,  they  employed 
themselves  in  repairing  and  whitening  the  public  and  private 
buildings,  and  in  furnishing  themselves  with  new  dresses 
and  domestic  utensils,  in  order  that  everything  might  be 
new,  or  at  least  appear  to  be  so,  upon  the  commencement 
of  the  new  century.  On  the  first  day  of  that  year  and  of 
that  century,  which,  as  we  have  already  mentioned,  corre- 
sponded to  the  26th  of  February,  for  no  person  was  it  lawful 
to  taste  water  before  midday.  At  that  hour  the  sacrifices 
began,  the  number  of  which  was  suited  to  the  grandeur  of 
the  festival.  Every  place  resounded  with  the  voice  of  glad- 
ness and  mutual  congratulations  on  account  of  the  new 
century  which  heaven  had  granted  to  them.  The  illumina- 
tions made  during  the  first  nights  were  extremely  magnificent ; 
their  ornaments  of  dress,  entertainments,  dances,  and  public 
games  were  superiorly  solemn.”  1 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

In  my  view  the  sun-god  Piltzintecutli  is  merely  a per- 
sonification of  Tonatiuh,  the  sun.  As  has  already  been  said, 
solar  worship  in  Mexico  seems  to  have  been  developed  at  a 
comparatively  late  period.  In  the  myths  regarding  the 
origin  of  the  sun  given  by  Olmos  and  Sahagun,  it  is  clear  that 
he  is  regarded  more  as  a luminary  than  as  a god.  The  name 
Tonatiuh,  indeed,  means  nothing  more  than  “ sun,”  and 
although  one  of  the  sacrificed  gods  was  believed  to  have 

1 See  Sahagun,  bk.  vii,  cs.  x-xiii,  for  a much  more  detailed  description. 

20 


306 


STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


given  him  life,  and  he  afterwards  acts  as  a living  being,  he 
does  not  seem  to  possess  the  same  qualities  of  personality  as 
his  later  form,  Piltzintecutli.  The  expression  “ Tonatiuh  ” 
seems  to  have  been  regarded  as  a divine  place-name, 
a paradise  to  which  those  warriors  fared  who  died  in 
battle. 

Tonatiuh  was  known  as  the  Teotl,  that  is  as  the  god  par 
excellence,  but  this  does  not  by  any  means  imply  that  the 
Mexicans  regarded  him  as  the  highest  form  of  deity  known 
to  them.  I think  it  rather  means  that  the  priests,  having 
arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  the  tonalamatl  and  the  calendar 
hinged,  so  to  speak,  upon  the  solar  periods,  came  very 
naturally  to  regard  the  sun  as  the  centre  or  hub  of  the  intri- 
cate system  which  they  had  built  up  through  generations. 
The  very  name  Teotl,  too,  shows  that,  in  later  times  at  least, 
the  sun  was  regarded  as  a deity,  perhaps  because  he  occu- 
pied the  vault  of  the  sky  “ where  the  gods  live,” 

But  above  and  beyond  this  we  have  to  regard  Mexican 
sun-worship  from  an  entirely  different  point  of  view.  There 
is  abundant  evidence  that  the  hunting  tribes  of  the  northern 
steppes,  the  Chichimec  immigrants,  possessed  a primitive 
sun-worship  of  their  own.  It  may  be,  indeed,  that  it  was 
from  this  that  the  worship  of  Tonatiuh  sprang,  and  not  from 
the  consideration  of  calendric  science ; but  the  criteria 
we  possess  regarding  this  part  of  the  question  is  at  present 
much  too  scanty  to  permit  of  more  precise  statement.  But 
if  we  know  that  sun-worship  obtained  among  the  nomadic 
tribes  of  northern  Mexico,  we  are  somewhat  ignorant  of  the 
precise  form  it  took.  One  thing,  however,  seems  certain, 
and  that  is  that  it  was  founded  on  the  belief  that  the  sun 
existed  on  the  blood  of  animals,  preferably  deer,  and  that 
when  these  were  scarce,  on  the  blood  of  human  beings.  If 
blood-offerings  to  the  sun  were  to  cease,  it  was  thought  that 
the  luminary  would  grow  weak,  fail,  and  become  extinguished, 
or  else  would  visit  his  wrath  upon  humanity  in  some  such 
manner  as  we  read  of  in  those  myths  which  recount  the  re- 
current catastrophes  of  fire,  wind,  deluge,  and  earthquakes 
which  the  wrathful  luminary  brought  upon  mankind.  I 


THE  SUN-GOD 


307 


would,  therefore,  date  the  introduction  of  the  solar  worship 
proper  into  Mexico,  and  consequently  that  of  human  sacrifice, 
from  the  period  of  entry  of  those  northern  Chichimec  peoples, 
who,  entering  the  Valley  of  Mexico  at  an  epoch  shortly  after 
the  disintegration  of  the  Toltec  civilization,  adopted  an 
agricultural  existence,  and  finding  the  supply  of  wild  animals 
insufficient  to  meet  the  requirements  of  sacrifice,  instituted 
the  occasional  immolation  of  human  beings.  This  custom 
seems,  indeed,  to  have  already  obtained  in  the  case  of  the 
ritual  of  some  of  the  native  gods,  for  example,  Tlaloc  and  the 
Earth-mother,  and  it  may  be,  indeed,  that  the  northern 
nomads  drew  the  inspiration  which  prompted  them  to  this 
evil  practice  from  their  more  civilized  neighbours.  But  it 
is  even  more  probable  that,  as  the  various  Mexican  peoples 
were  for  the  most  part  of  cognate  origin  and  contiguous 
civilization,  the  practice  of  human  sacrifice  had  been 
common  to  all  of  them  in  a more  or  less  modified  form  for 
some  generations,  and  only  received  an  impetus  after  the 
Chichimec  immigration.  Against  this  view  may  be  quoted 
the  myth  which  refers  the  introduction  of  human  sacrifice 
to  a group  of  Huaxtec  earth-goddesses,  Tlazolteotl  and  her 
sisters.  But  it  seems  to  me  that  this  Maya  people  were  by 
no  means  so  prone  to  the  custom,  and  that  in  this  instance 
Tlazolteotl  has  been  confounded  with  some  of  her  Mexican 
forms.  The  process  by  which  blood  was  thought  of  as  being 
transformed  into  rain  has  already  been  fully  described,  and 
it  but  remains  here  to  indicate  that  Tonatiuh  is,  in  places, 
closely  identified  with  the  sign  atl,  w^ater,  and  is  indeed 
one  of  the  four  rulers  of  the  week  beginning  with  the  day 
“ one  rain,”  probably  because  of  the  early  belief  that  on  one 
occasion  the  sun  “ drank  up  ” all  the  water  on  earth  and 
later  disgorged  it  in  floods. 

For  the  reason  that  he  was  regarded  as  existing  on  blood, 
the  sun  was  thought  of  as  the  great  patron  of  warriors,  and 
has  an  intimate  connexion  with  both  Uitzilopochtli  and 
Tezcatlipoca.  But  if  we  seek  for  evidence  which  would  seem 
to  exalt  him  above  the  greater  gods  in  Mexico,  and  place 
him  in  a central  and  pre-eminent  position  in  the  pantheon. 


308 


STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


we  will  be  disappointed.1  At  the  same  time  we  must  re- 
collect that  the  two  deities  just  mentioned,  and  even  Quetzal- 
coatl  in  a measure,  possessed  a solar  connexion,  and  in  the 
offering  of  the  hearts  of  all  victims  to  his  glowing  face  we 
may  probably  see  a survival  or  a reminiscence  from  a period 
when  he  was  perhaps  the  central  figure  in  the  pantheon  of 
the  Chichimec  nomads. 

There  is  also  plenty  of  evidence  that  the  sun  must  be 
classed  with  Xiulitecutli  and  the  other  gods  of  fire,  as  is 
shown  by  the  great  fire  festival  which  took  place  every  fifty- 
two  years.  But  the  lack  of  data  regarding  the  sun  as  a 
personalized  deity  rather  than  a divine  luminary  places  us 
at  a disadvantage  in  attempting  to  assess  his  precise  nature 
and  status  in  the  Mexican  pantheon,  and  considerable 
research  is  required  before  this  can  be  essayed  with  any  degree 
of  confidence. 

METZTLI  = “ THE  MOON,”  OR  TECCIZTECATL  = 
“HE  FROM  THE  SEA-SNAIL” 

Symbol  : Bone-surrounded  disk  set  in  the  night-sky,  containing  a 
rabbit. 

Calendar  Place  : 

Ruler  of  the  sixth  day-count,  miquiztli. 

Ruler  of  the  sixth  tonalamall  division,  ce  miquiztli. 

Ruler  of  the  fifth  night-hour. 

Compass  Direction  : South. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — In  this  codex  he  is  shown  as  a female,  old, 
with  the  gobber  tooth  or  lip  contraction  indicative  of  extreme 
age.  lie  is  painted  yellow,  the  colour  of  women.  The  white 
of  the  clothing  expresses  the  relatively  dull  hue  of  the 
luminary  when  compared  with  the  sun. 

Codex  Valicanus  B. — Here  he  is  old  and  white-haired,  and 
is  pictured  as  a priest  with  the  marine  snail’s  shell  on  his 
brow.  The  body-colour  is  blue,  as  is  the  face,  on  sheet  30, 
but  on  sheet  88,  half -blue,  half-red,  as  in  the  Codex  Fejbrvary- 


1 See  Sahagun,  bk.  iii.  Appendix,  c.  iv. 


METZTLI,  THE  MOON 


309 


Mayer  picture  of  Mixcoatl.  On  sheet  30  he  is  figured  with 
a long  beard  and  wears  Xochipilli’s  ornaments. 

Aubin  Tonalamatl. — In  this  place  he  is  represented  by 
Tezcatlipoca. 

Codex  Fejerv dry -Mayer. — Sheet  24  : Here  he  is  pictured  as 
an  old  god  with  a long  beard.  The  body-colour  is  blue,  and 
the  face  half-blue,  half-red,  like  that  of  Xolotl  in  the  same 
MS.  He  wears  the  sea-snail  shell  on  his  fillet. 

MYTHS 

The  principal  myths  relating  to  the  origin  of  the  Moon- 
god  have  already  been  given  in  the  chapter  on  Cosmogony. 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  V aticanus  A states  that : 

“ They  believed  that  the  moon  presided  over  human 
generation,  and  accordingly  they  always  put  it  by  the  side 
of  the  sun.  They  placed  on  its  head  a sea-snail,  to  denote 
that  in  the  same  way  as  this  marine  animal  creeps  from  its 
integument  or  shell,  so  man  comes  from  his  mother’s  womb.” 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  says  : 

“ Meztli  was  otherwise  named  Tectzizteeatl ; because  in 
the  same  way  that  a snail  creeps  from  its  shell,  so  man  proceeds 
from  his  mother’s  womb.  They  placed  the  moon  opposite 
to  the  sun,  because  its  course  continually  crosses  his  ; and 
they  believed  it  to  be  the  cause  of  human  generation.” 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Tecciztecatl  is  “ the  Man  in  the  Moon,”  the  spirit  who 
dwells  in  or  animates  the  luminary  of  night.  He  is  frequently 
depicted  as  an  old  man  or  priest,  with  staff  in  hand,  and  is  the 
wizard,  or  naaalli,  who  lurks  within  the  moon-cave,  or  house, 
for  so  the  moon  seems  to  have  appeared  to  the  Mexicans. 
It  seems  also  to  have  been  regarded  or  symbolized  as  a snail- 
shell,  and  it  is  probable  that  the  curved  shape  of  it  in  its 
earliest  phase,  no  less  than  its  gradual  growth,  brought  about 
this  conception.  This  in  turn  created  the  train  of  thought 
which  resulted  in  its  being  regarded  as  the  symbol  of  con- 
ception and  birth — its  growth  and  gradual  rotundity,  as 


310  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


well  as  its  symbolic  connexion  with  the  snail  assisting  the 
idea.  As  the  wizard  of  night  concealed  within  his  cavern, 
Tecciztecatl  was  identified  with  Tezcatlipoca,  the  sorcerer 
par  excellence,  the  magician  who  held  sway  over  the  dreaded 
hours  of  darkness.  The  moon  had  also  a connexion  with 
Chalchihuitlicue  and  the  octli-g ods,  which  is  dealt  with  in 
the  sections  relating  to  those  deities. 

MIXCOATL,  IZTAC  MIXCOATL,  OR  CAMAXTLI 
AS  MIXCOATL  = “ CLOUD  SERPENT  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Chichimec  country  ; Mexico-Tenochtitlan  ; 

Tlaxcallan. 

Minor  Names  : 

Iztac  Mixcoatl. 

Camaxtli. 

Relationship  : One  of  the  Tzitzimime  ; father  of  Uitzilopochtli  ; 
husband  of  Itzcueye. 

Festival  : Quecholli,  the  fourteenth  month. 

Compass  Direction  : North. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  25:  In  this  manuscript  Mix- 
coatl’s  almost  nude  body  is  striped  with  white,  as  in  the  case  of 
some  of  the  stellar  deities,  and  he  has  the  half-mask  stellar 
face-painting  about  the  eye.  His  hair  curls  up  above  the  brow, 
is  covered  with  downy  white  feathers,  and  he  wears  a forked 
heron-feather  tuft  on  the  head.  On  sheet  37  his  effigy  is 
accompanied  by  the  symbolical  weapons  of  war. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  50  ; right-hand  corner,  lower  portion  : 
The  representation  in  this  place  is  almost  identical  with  that 
in  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  sheet  25.  On  sheet  15  the  god  has 
the  implements  of  war  and  a small  hand-flag,  and  wears  a 
blue  metal  breast-plate  set  in  gold,  from  which  depends  a 
chalchihuitl  jewel. 

Codex  Fejervary-Mayer. — Sheet  41  : Mixcoatl  is  here 
depicted  with  body-colour  half-blue,  half-red,  the  black 
domino-stellar  painting  about  the  eye,  his  hair  puffed  up 
above  the  brow  and  surmounted  by  the  warrior’s  adorn- 
ment. The  body-painting  in  this  place  is  merely  a variant 


(From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  25.) 


(From  Codex  Magliabecchiano,  3 folio,  sheet  42.) 
FORMS  OF  MIXCOATL. 


310) 


0. 0, 


(From  a wall-painting  at  Mitla,  Palace  I.) 


I sitae  Mixcoatl.  (From  Codex  Borgia-) 
FORMS  OF  MIXCOATL. 


[311 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MIXCOATL 


311 


of  the  striped  colour,  perhaps  indicating  the  twilight.  As 
god  of  the  hunting  tribes,  he  is  naked  like  the  hunter,  and 
has  an  ear-plug  made  from  a deer’s  foot.  He  is  armed  with 
a throwing-stick  ( atlatl ). 

WALL-PAINTINGS 

On  the  west  side  of  the  court  of  Palace  I at  Mitla  are  cer- 
tain fragments,  some  of  which  undoubtedly  represent  Mix- 
coatl  in  his  different  phases.  In  the  first  of  these  he  is  repre- 
sented as  wearing  a white  wig  surmounted  by  tufts  of  down 
in  which  arrows  are  stuck.  On  his  face  he  has  the  familiar 
“ domino-painting,”  he  is  bearded,  and  his  nose-plug  is  of  a 
peculiar  character,  somewhat  unfamiliar  and  expressing 
a serpentine  motif.  He  wears  a collar  writh  sharp  stellar 
edges.  The  fifth  figure  to  the  right  from  this  once  more 
represents  him  in  the  same  guise,  only  that  in  his  left  hand 
he  holds  the  atlatl,  or  spear-thrower.  His  peculiarly  stellar 
character  has  not  been  lost  upon  the  artist  who  executed  these 
paintings,  as  the  stellar  ey e-motif  decorates  the  top  of  the 
frieze  on  which  they  appear.  Not  far  away  is  seen  the  deer 
usually  associated  with  him. 

STATUARY  AND  PAINTINGS 

An  interesting  stone  figure  of  Mixcoatl  was  discovered 
in  the  ruins  of  the  Castillo  de  Teayo,  to  the  west  of  the  pyramid. 
It  is  made  of  sandstone,  and  the  frontal  aspect  shows  the  god 
wearing  a high  'panache  of  feathers,  a headdress  flanked  by 
tufts  or  puffings  of  some  textile  material  from  which  feathers 
depend,  and  an  elaborate  necklace.  The  skirt,  the  upper 
part  of  which  is  V-shaped,  hangs  down  to  the  ankles,  and  is 
tied  up  behind  in  a double  knot.  In  his  left  hand  he  carries 
the  bag  which  holds  obsidian  arrow-heads,  his  invariable 
symbol,  and  in  the  right  the  S-formed  lightning  symbol, 
with  which  he  is  often  represented,  as  in  the  Codex  Maglia- 
hecchiano.  Another  relief  from  the  same  site  shows  him 
carrying  the  same  symbols.  His  hair  is  decorated  with 
feather-balls,  as  in  the  Codex  Magliabecchiano  and  Duran’s 


312  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


illustration.  In  a painting  from  Teopancaxo  he  wears  a 
peculiar  headdress  from  which  falls  behind  a large  panache 
of  feathers,  and  which  seems  to  be  decorated  with  down ; 
a horizontal  band  crosses  the  face  beneath  the  eye  and  covers 
the  whole  of  the  nose.  In  one  hand  he  carries  the  lightning 
symbol,  from  which  spring  serpentine  streaks  of  lightning, 
and  in  the  other  a small  shield  like  a sunflower  and  three 
arrows  with  blunt  ends. 

AS  IZTAC  MIXCOATL  = “ WHITE  CLOUD  SERPENT  ” 

Minor  Names  : Ce  eecatl  = “ One  Wind.” 

Relationship  : 

Husband  of  Ilancueye  and  progenitor  of  the  Xelliua  national 
ancestors,  Tenoch,  Ulmecatl,  Xicalancatl,  Mixtecatl,  Otomitl. 

Husband  of  a second  wife,  Chimamatl,  by  whom  he  had  a son, 
Quetzalcoatl. 

Compass  Direction  : Upper  region. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Fej ervary-Mayer . — Sheet  32  : He  has  the  head  of  a 
deer.  He  carries  for  a staff  the  neck  of  a long-billed,  white 
bird,  a heron.  Before  him  stands  a dish  containing  an  eye 
and  a feather  ornament,  reproducing  in  form  and  colour 
the  warrior’s  forked  heron-feather  adornment.  Sheet  6 : 
He  is  painted  a yellow  colour,  thin  and  with  wrinkled  skin, 
his  face  looking  out  of  the  open  throat  of  a bird,  which  has 
a feather  crest  curling  up  and  a variegated  rosette  on  its 
beak.  In  one  hand  he  holds  a bone  dagger,  in  the  other  a 
staff  tied  round  with  a white-fringed  cloth.  As  hieroglyph 
is  shown  beside  him  the  day  ce  eecatl,  “ one  wind.” 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  60  : Here  he  is  represented  as  having 
heron-feather  hair  and  beard,  and  a ring-shaped  appendage 
below  the  upper  lip  indicative  of  age.  He  is  dressed  as  a 
priest,  with  tobacco-calabash  on  back  and  red  patch  on 
temple.  He  holds  in  one  hand  a staff  bent  like  a heron’s 
neck,  and  in  the  other  a bunch  of  malinalli  grass.  Sheet 
24  : The  representation  here  is  almost  identical,  except 
that  the  staff  has  a heron’s  head  and  that  a bone  piercer 


CAMAXTLT 


313 


is  worn  behind  the  ear.  In  both  pictures  he  wears  a curious 
back  device,  recalling  that  on  the  rattle-staff  of  Quetzalcoatl. 
In  some  places  he  wears  a helmet-mask  like  the  head  of  a 
deer. 

AS  CAMAXTLI 

Area  of  Worship  : Tlaxcallan  and  Iluexotzinco. 

Festival  : Ce  tecpatl  (movable  feast). 

Relationship  : Brother  of  Uitzilopochtli,  and  probably  a local  variant 
of  him. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Face-paint. — He  wears  the  domino  face-paint,  like  Uitzilo- 
pochtli and  Mixcoatl,  and  a nose-plug. 

The  body  is  striped  with  red  and  white,  in  which  circum- 
stance he  agrees  with  Mixcoatl  and  Tlauizcalpantecutli,  the 
morning  star.  He  wears  a headdress  seemingly  of  feathers, 
and  in  Duran  his  hair  is  long  and  he  wears  a knitted  loin- 
cloth. A dead  rabbit,  or  its  skin,  is  slung  across  his  breast. 
In  the  Humboldt  MS.  (Roy.  Lib.  of  Berlin)  his  headdress 
perhaps  represents  the  symbol  of  hieroglyphic  expression 
for  the  phrase  atl  tlachinolli  (water  and  fire)  used  in  the  sense 
of  “ war.” 

Weapons,  etc. — He  carries  the  atlatl,  or  spear-thrower,  and 
net-bag  of  the  wild  hunting  tribes,  bow  and  arrows,  sometimes 
tipped  with  down,  also  a bag  or  pouch,  in  which  he  carries 
his  arrowheads  of  obsidian.  Like  Mixcoatl  he  is  sometimes 
clothed  in  the  device  of  the  two-headed  deer,  in  which  he 
went  to  war. 

MYTHS 

Mixcoatl  has  already  been  alluded  to  in  the  precis  of  the 
early  chapters  of  the  Historia  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sns  Pin- 
turas  given  in  the  chapter  on  Cosmogony,  where  the  cir- 
cumstances of  his  birth  are  touched  upon.  In  chapter  x 
of  the  same  work  he  is  identified  with  Amimitl,  another 
Chichimec  deity,  seemingly  without  reason.  The  Anales 
de  Quauhtitlan  speaks  of  him  as  one  of  the  three  who  “ sought 


314  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


the  hearth-stone,”  and  as  one  of  the  priests  of  the  Fire-god. 
As  Iztac  Mixcoatl,  according  to  Motolinia,1 2  he  dwelt  with 
his  wife,  Ilancueye,  in  Chicomoztoc,  the  “ Land  of  the  Seven 
Caves,”  the  primeval  land  of  the  tribes,  and  from  them  sprang 
the  forefathers  of  the  natives.  By  a second  wife,  Chimamatl, 
he  begot  the  god  Quetzalcoatl.  In  the  Tlaxcaltec  legend 
reproduced  in  the  Historia  de  los  Mexicavos  por  sits  Pinturas ,l 
mention  is  made  of  a two-headed  deer  which  fell  from  heaven 
and  was  honoured  as  a god  by  the  people  of  Cuitlauac,  and  it 
is  told  how,  clothed  in  its  form  or  disguise,  Camaxtli  or 
Mixcoatl  subdued  the  surrounding  tribes. 

Iztac  Mixcoatl  was,  indeed,  the  Chichimec  Adam,  the 
father  of  the  tribe.  A hymn  to  the  gods  of  the  hunt,  of  whom 
Mixcoatl  was  the  chief,  is  as  follows  : 


Song  of  the  Cloud-serpents 

I 

Out  of  the  seven  Caverns  he  sprung  (was  born). 

II 

Out  of  the  land  of  the  prickly  plant  he  sprung. 

III 

I came  down  (was  born) 

I came  down 

With  my  spear  made  of  the  prickly  plant 
I came  down 
I came  down 

With  my  spear  of  the  prickly  plant. 

IV 


I came  down 
I came  down 
With  my  net  bag. 


I seize  him 
I seize  him 

And  I seize  him,  and  he  is  seized. 

1 Historia  de  los  Indios  de  la  Nueva  Espaiia,  Preface,  in  Izeazbalceta, 
vol.  i,  1858,  pp.  7,  10. 

2 Izeazbalceta,  vol.  iii,  1891,  p.  237. 


THE  FESTIVAL  OF  QUECHOLLI 


315 


FESTIVAL 

The  great  festival  of  Mixcoatl  was  the  hunt-drive  in  the 
month  quccholli.  Sahagun  says  of  this  observance  1 : 

“ Quecholli  was  the  name  of  the  fourteenth  month,  Mixcoatl 
being  honoured  with  festivals.  Arrows  and  darts  for  use 
in  war  were  made,  and  many  slaves  were  slaughtered  in  honour 
of  this  god.  During  the  five  days  spent  in  making  the  arrows, 
everyone  slit  their  ears  and  rubbed  their  temples  with  the 
blood  thus  drawn.  Penance  was  supposed  to  be  thus  per- 
formed before  the  deer-hunting  commenced.  Those  who 
did  not  slit  themselves  were  deprived  of  their  cloaks  as  tribute. 
During  these  days  no  man  cohabited  with  his  wife,  and  the 
aged  abstained  from  the  use  of  pulque , as  penance  was  being 
performed.  The  four  days  employed  in  the  making  of  arrows 
and  darts  being  ended,  smaller  arrows  were  made  and  tied 
in  bundles  of  four  to  which  were  added  four  pine  torches. 
These  were  placed  as  offerings  upon  the  graves  of  the  dead, 
besides  two  tamalli  to  each  bundle.  These  remained  for  a 
day  upon  the  tombs  and  were  then  burned  during  the  night, 
other  ceremonies  being  held  as  well  in  honour  of  the  dead. 

“ On  the  tenth  day  of  this  month  the  Mexicans  and  the 
Tlatelulca  resorted  together  to  the  mountain  of  Cacatepec, 
which  they  called  their  mother.  On  reaching  it  they  con- 
structed thatched  huts,  lighted  large  fires,  and  spent  the  day 
in  absolute  idleness. 

Next  morning  they  breakfasted  and  went  out  together  into 
the  country.  There  they  spread  themselves  out  in  a circular 
line,  in  which  were  enclosed  a large  number  of  animals 
— deer,  rabbits,  and  others ; they  gradually  approached 
them  so  as  to  enmesh  them  in  a small  space,  and  the  hunt 
then  began,  each  one  taking  what  he  could. 

“ After  the  hunt,  captives  and  slaves  were  slaughtered 
in  the  temple  called  Tlamatzinco.  They  were  bound  hand 
and  foot  and  were  carried  up  the  temple  stairs  in  the  same 
fashion  as  a deer  is  carried  by  its  four  legs  when  taken  to 
the  butcher.  They  were  put  to  death  with  great  ceremony. 
The  man  and  the  woman  who  represented  the  image  of 

1 Appendix  to  bk.  i,  c.  xiv. 


316 


STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


Mixcoatl  and  his  companion  were  slain  in  another  temple, 
which  was  called  Mixcoateopan.  Several  other  rites  were 
performed.” 

Of  this  festival  Acosta  gives  a slightly  different  version  : 

“ The  feast  they  made  was  pleasant  and  in  this  sort : 
They  sounded  a trumpet  at  break  of  day,  at  the  sound  whereof 
they  all  assembled  with  their  bows,  arrows,  nets,  and  other 
instruments  for  hunting  ; then  they  went  in  procession  with 
their  idol,  being  followed  by  a great  number  of  people  to  a 
high  mountain,  upon  the  top  whereof  they  had  made  a 
bower  of  leaves,  and  in  the  middest  thereof  an  altar  richly 
decked,  whereupon  they  placed  the  idol.  They  marched  with 
a great  bruit  of  trumpets,  cornets,  flutes  and  drums,  and 
being  come  unto  the  place  they  environed  this  mountain 
on  all  sides,  putting  fire  to  it  on  all  parts  : by  means  of  which 
many  beasts  flew  forth,  as  stags,  conies,  Hares,  foxes  and 
Woolves,  which  went  to  the  top  flying  from  the  fire.  These 
hunters  followed  after  with  great  cries  and  noise  of  divers 
instruments,  hunting  them  to  the  top  before  the  idol,  whither 
flew  such  a great  number  of  beasts,  in  so  great  a press,  that 
they  leaped  one  upon  another,  upon  the  people,  and  upon 
the  altar,  wherein  they  took  great  delight.  Then  took  they 
a great  number  of  these  beasts,  and  sacrificed  them  before 
the  idol,  as  stags  and  other  great  beasts,  pulling  out  their 
hearts  as  they  use  in  the  sacrifice  of  men,  and  with  the  like 
ceremony  : which  done  they  took  all  their  prey  upon  their 
shoulders,  and  retired  with  their  idol  in  the  same  manner 
as  they  came,  and  entered  the  city  laden  with  all  these  things, 
very  joyfully  with  great  store  of  music,  trumpets,  and  drums 
until  they  came  to  the  temple  where  they  placed  their  idol 
with  great  reverence  and  solemnity.  They  presently  went 
to  prepare  their  venison  wherewith  they  made  a banquet 
to  all  the  people  ; and  after  dinner  they  made  their  plays, 
representations  and  dances  before  the  idol.” 

TEMPLES 

Mixcoatl’s  temples  in  Mexico  were  the  Mixcoapan  tzompantli 
and  the  Mixcoateopan.  In  the  first  were  preserved  the  heads 


NATURE  OF  MIXCOATL 


317 


of  the  victims  sacrificed  to  the  god.  The  ceremony  of 
quecholli  was  commenced  in  the  latter. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Mixcoatl  was  primarily  the  great  god  of  the  Chichimecs 
and  the  Otomies,  a god  of  the  wild  hunting  tribes  of  the  plains 
to  the  north.  Numbers  of  these  had  settled  in  Mexico  City 
and  elsewhere  within  Anahuac,  to  which  they  had  carried 
his  worship  with  them.  The  tribal  legends  connected  with 
him  seem  to  imply  that  he  was  regarded  in  one  of  his  phases, 
that  of  Iztac  Mixcoatl,  as  the  Chichimec  Adam  or  Abraham, 
and  he  is  even  alluded  to  as  the  “ father  ” of  Quetzalcoatl  and 
“ brother  ” of  Uitzilopochtli.  The  probabilities  are  that  he 
was  the  god  of  a section  of  the  Nahua  who  entered  Mexico 
proper  before  the  advent  of  the  worshippers  of  Uitzilopochtli, 
and  as  he  had  similar  characteristics  to  the  latter  deity,  he 
became  connected  with  him  in  the  popular  imagination. 

Mixcoatl  seems  to  me  one  of  that  large  class  of  conceptions 
which  recur  so  frequently  in  all  mythologies — the  rain-  and 
lightning-bearing  cloud,  which  in  the  mind  of  the  savage  takes 
the  form  of  a great  monster,  a dragon  or  serpent,  vomiting 
fire  and  discharging  water.  The  name  Mixcoatl  means  “ Cloud- 
serpent”  and  serves  to  substantiate  this  conception  of  him. 
But  in  the  eyes  of  a hunting  people  he  came,  like  other  deities 
of  the  kind,  to  be  regarded  as  the  great  hunter  who  casts  the 
thunderbolt,  the  lightning-arrow,  and  therefore  as  the  god- 
like prototype  of  the  savage  sportsman.  Mixcoatl’s  possession 
of  the  obsidian  arrow-head,  which  became  personified  in 
Itzpapalotl,  gives  further  weight  to  this  idea. 

Because  he  partook  of  the  attributes  of  a sky-god,  Mixcoatl 
almost  inevitably  became  identified  with  the  stellar  deities 
dwelling  in  the  heavens  above.  He  is,  indeed,  Chief  of  the 
Centzon  Mimixcoa,  which  has  been  translated  “ The  Four 
Hundred  Northerners,”  the  host  of  stars  to  the  north  of  the 
Equator,  in  contradistinction  to  the  Centzon  Uitznaua, 
or  “ Four  Hundred  Southerners,”  who  were  scattered  by 
Uitzilopochtli  immediately  after  his  birth.  But  here  a 
question  of  some  difficulty  arises.  Uitznaua  may  correctly 


318  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 

be  translated  “ southerners,”  whereas  Mimixcoa  can  scarcely 
be  rendered  otherwise  than  as  the  plural  of  “ cloud -serpent.” 
The  insignia  of  these  latter  deities,  however,  are  certainly 
stellar.  They  wear  the  stellar  face-mask  and  are  in  every  way 
to  be  connected  with  the  stars.  It  is  clear,  too,  that  Mixcoatl 
in  one  of  his  manifestations  must  be  connected  with  the 
morning  star.  But  I take  this  connexion,  as  in  the  case  of 
Quetzalcoatl,  to  have  arisen  at  a period  comparatively  late. 
Again,  we  frequently  find  in  Mexican  myth  that  the  stars 
are  regarded  as  serpentine  in  character,  and  indeed,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  Tzitzimime,  partake  of  insect  characteristics. 

“ Mixcoatl  ” is  the  expression  in  use  at  the  present  time 
among  the  natives  of  Mexico  for  the  tropical  whirlwind  1 — 
obviously  a much  later  conception  of  his  nature,  and  one  more 
intimately  connected  with  that  of  Tezcatlipoca,  as  I have 
attempted  to  show  in  the  passages  relating  to  that  god,  and 
to  Quetzalcoatl.  There  is,  indeed,  a strong  resemblance 
between  Mixcoatl  and  Tezcatlipoca,  both  of  whom  are  con- 
nected with  obsidian,  and  carry  the  hunter’s  bag  of  obsidian 
darts. 

Mixcoatl’s  festival  is  obviously  one  of  considerable  anti- 
quity. As  practised  in  Mexico-Tenochtitlan  it  was  obviously 
a reminiscence  of  the  great  communal  hunt.  Its  sacrifice 
of  women  in  the  place  of  deer,  the  victims  being  “ carried 
up  the  temple  stairs  in  the  same  fashion  as  a deer  is  carried 
by  its  four  legs  when  taken  to  the  butcher,”  is  obviously  a 
substitution  in  more  civilized  times  of  human  for  deer  sacrifice, 
either  because  the  animals  of  the  hunt  were  not  so  easily 
obtained  or  for  the  reason  that  the  idea  of  human  sacrifice 
had  so  thoroughly  interpenetrated  Mexican  religious  usage 
as  to  render  the  older  form  unacceptable,  merely  retaining 
its  broader  characteristics.  It  has  also  a strong  resemblance 
to  those  medicine-hunts  until  recently  practised  by  the  Indians 
of  North  America,  and  in  the  Zuni  mysteries  of  to-day,  a 
procuring  of  magical  virtue  for  the  arrows  which  were  made 
during  the  first  five  days  of  the  festival,  and  smaller  models 
of  which  were  offered  up  on  the  graves  of  the  dead.  Mixcoatl’ s 

1 Brinton,  Myths  oj  the  New  World,  p.  190. 


TLAUIZCALPANTECUTLI 


319 


wife  Itzcueye  is  a deer  and,  as  we  have  seen,  the  deer  was 
the  disguise  of  his  surrogate,  Camaxtli.  The  deer  is  the 
animal  connected  in  the  barbarian  mind  with  the  quest  for 
water  or  food.  Where  the  deer  migrated  in  search  for  these 
the  savage  must  follow.  The  animals  which  compose  the 
staple  food-supply  of  savages  are  frequently  regarded  as  their 
gods.  In  America,  on  the  introduction  of  later  anthropo- 
morphic deities,  the  animal  forms  are  frequently  conceived 
of  as  the  mates  of  these — perhaps  one  explanation  of  the 
belief  in  descent  from  animal  forms. 

Because  of  his  connexion  with  the  lightning  Mixcoatl 
was  also  god  of  the  fire-twirler,  the  apparatus  with  which 
fire  was  made,  and  he  appears  in  this  character  during  the 
fire  festival. 

TLAUIZCALPANTECUTLI  = “ LORD  OF  THE  HOUSE 
OF  THE  DAWN” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico  ; Toltec  (?). 

Calendar  Place  : With  the  Fire-god,  lord  of  the  ninth  week,  ce 
coatl.  Twelfth  of  the  thirteen  lords  of  the  day-hours. 
Compass  Direction  : West. 

Relationship  : Variant  of  Quetzalcoatl. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

General. — In  the  Codex  Borgia  (sheet  25)  he  is  painted  as 
having  a white-and-red-striped  body,  and  the  black  face 
with  white-spotted  quincunx  peculiar  to  him  in  his  special 
form  as  evening  star.  The  hair  is  yellow,  the  locks  rising 
in  curls  above  the  brow,  and  bound  by  a red  fillet.  We  can 
probably  recognize  him  in  the  figure  seen  in  sheet  19  of 
Codex  V aticanus  B,  which  bears  a strong  resemblance  to  that 
found  on  sheet  57  of  the  same  MS.,  confronting  the  Fire-god  ; 
but  in  the  first  instance  he  is  not  shown  with  the  black  “ half- 
mask ” painting  about  the  eye.  He  has,  however,  the  same 
warlike  implements — shield,  spears,  and  atlatl — as  in  Codex 
Borgia,  as  well  as  a pouch  for  obsidian  arrow-heads  and  a 
small  sacrificial  flag.  He  is,  however,  almost  universally 
represented  with  a white  or  white-and-red-striped  body  and 


320  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


face-painting,  and  the  deep  black  “ half-mask  ” edged  with 
small  white  circles  which  is  usually  shown  in  the  pictures 
of  Mixcoatl,  Paynal,  and  Atlaua,  and  which  is  described  as 
“ the  stellar  face-painting  called  darkness.”  He  frequently 
wears  long,  tapering  oval  ornaments  attached  to  red  leather 
thongs  in  place  of  the  chalchihuitl  jewels  which  so  often  depend 
from  the  dress  of  the  other  gods,  and  the  band  which 
supports  these  has  four  diverging  ends  terminating  in  a bunch 
of  feathers,  as  writh  Tonatiuh,  Ueuecoyotl,  and  Xochipilli. 
The  crown  is  generally  composed  of  black  feathers  having 
white  spots,  alternating  with  longer  yellow  or  red  plumes. 
On  the  breast  is  seen  an  ornament  like  that  of  Tezcatlipoca. 
In  Codex  Borbonicus  and  Borgia  he  is  accompanied  by  the 
insignia  of  those  warriors  wbo  died  by  sacrifice,  the  blue 
crown  with  the  three-cornered  frontal  plate,  the  axe-shaped 
blue  ear-plug,  the  blue  nose-plug,  the  white  paper  shoulder- 
tie,  and  the  small  blue  dog  which  accompanied  the  dead  man 
on  his  way  to  the  region  of  Mictlan. 

On  the  five  sheets  of  Codex  V aiicanus  B which  indicate  the 
periods  of  the  planet  Venus  wre  observe  Tlauizcalpantecutli 
depicted  five  times,  and  have  thus  a most  favourable  oppor- 
tunity for  studying  his  various  attributes.  All  of  these 
pictures  represent  him  in  the  form  of  the  evening  star,  w’ith 
the  quincunx  of  white  spots  on  the  dark  background  of  his 
face.  He  is  depicted  as  half-black,  half-white,  the  body, 
upper  arms,  and  knees  being  black,  but  the  forearms,  thighs, 
and  lower  part  of  the  legs  white  and  striped  with  yellow 
longitudinal  lines,  like  the  striping  on  Uitzilopochtli’s  body. 
Under  the  eye  is  a motif  which  recalls  the  blue  snake- 
band  round  the  mouth  of  Tlaloc,  but  it  is  yellow  in  colour, 
and  forms  a kind  of  coil  in  the  middle  of  the  face  over  the 
nose.  A tassel  or  other  ornament  falls  from  it,  the  whole 
recalling  certain  Maya  types.  The  hair  is  flame-coloured, 
curls  upward,  and  is  bound  with  the  usual  fillet  studded  with 
white  slicings  from  mussel-shells,  and  the  black,  white-tipped 
feathers,  previously  alluded  to,  and  intermingled  with  eagle- 
plumes,  crown  the  head.  The  breast  is  covered  with  the 
white  eye-ring,  also  described  above,  and  which  is  character- 


Tlauizcalpanteeutli  piercing  Chalchihuitlicue. 
(From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  53.) 


(From  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  sheet  37.) 
FORMS  OF  TLAUIZCALPANTECUTLI. 


3201 


TLAUIZCALPANTECUTLI  (left)  AND  \ It"l  1M. 
(From  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  19.) 


INSIGNIA  OF  TLAUIZCALPANTECUTLI  321 


istic  of  Tezcatlipoca.  Accompanying  the  picture  is  the 
emblem  of  the  stellar  eye,  which  in  this  place  is  almost 
certainly  intended  to  depict  the  planet  Venus.  The  god 
holds  in  one  hand  the  atlatl,  or  spear-thrower,  and  in  the  other 
a bundle  of  darts,  to  symbolize  his  nature  as  a shooting  god. 

In  those  pictures  in  Codex  Borgia  where  the  god  is  repre- 
sented as  casting  his  spear  at  various  mythological  figures, 
his  insignia  is  in  agreement  with  that  portrayed  in  Codex 
Vaiicanus  B.  But  of  the  five  figures  in  which  he  is  shown 
as  the  spear-thrower,  in  one  only  is  he  depicted  with  white, 
red-striped  limbs,  the  remaining  figures  being  coloured  green, 
yellow,  brown,  and  blue.  Nor  has  the  face  the  characteristic 
painting  known  as  “ stellar  ” and  frequently  described  on 
those  pages,  but  is  skull-shaped,  and  represented  as  swallow- 
ing blood  and  a human  heart.  He  holds,  however,  the  usual 
spear-thrower,  shield,  hand-flag,  and  the  hunter’s  net-bag. 
The  Codex  Borgia  pictures  show,  too,  the  incidence  of  the 
god’s  other  attributes,  the  oval,  egg-shaped  ornaments  and 
the  white-tipped  black  feathers,  which,  however,  are  here 
considerably  shorter,  and  spread  over  the  crown  of  the  head 
only.  Here  also  the  first  of  the  five  figures  is  red-striped, 
the  others  being  blue,  red,  and  yellow,  and  red-striped.  Like 
the  figures  in  Codex  Bologna,  the  first  has  the  head  of  a skull 
painted  with  the  face-paint  of  Tlauizcalpantecutli,  with  the 
quincunx  of  five  disks  on  a dark  ground.  The  other  four 
figures  wear  masks,  that  part  of  their  faces  which  is  visible 
being  coloured  like  the  body  and  having  the  quincunx  of 
five  white  disks.  The  second  figure  wears  an  owl  naual, 
or  mask,  the  third  that  of  a dog,  the  fourth  a rabbit-mask, 
and  the  fifth,  like  the  first,  a dead  man’s  skull,  which,  however, 
is  portrayed  in  its  natural  colour  and  has  no  face-paint. 
The  owl-mask  of  the  second  figure  and  the  skull-mask  of 
the  fifth  show  that  they  represent  the  sequence  of  five  periods 
of  the  planet  Venus,  five  time-counts  based  on  its  period  of 
visibility,  and  that,  moreover,  these  figures  are  to  be  referred 
respectively  to  the  compass  directions,  east,  north,  west, 
south,  below.  The  Codex  Fejervary  figure  differs  from 
the  other  representations,  the  face  being  painted  white 
21 


322  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


with  yellow  stripes,  like  the  rest  of  the  body  and  limbs. 
But  that  this  figure  is  in  reality  identical  with  those  of  the 
other  manuscripts  is  proved  by  the  quincunx  of  white  spots 
disposed  in  the  same  manner  as  in  the  Codex  Vaticanus  B 
figure,  by  the  three  curly  locks  on  the  brow,  and  by  the  star- 
like  eye  worn  by  the  god  on  his  breast.  In  Codex  Borgia 
are  shown  a sacrificial  cord  and  two  small  paper  flags.  In 
Codex  Fejervary  we  see  a shield  with  feather  appendage, 
and  one  paper  flag,  which  is  evidently  intended  to  appear 
in  the  ritual  of  the  death  by  sacrifice.  Tlauizcalpantecutli 
was  for  the  Mexicans  an  indication  of  the  warrior’s  death, 
that  is,  sacrificial  death. 

In  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  the  hair  is  plastered  with 
white  downy  feathers,  and  round  the  neck  is  slung  the 
aztemacatl,  the  heron-feather  cord,  the  whole  indicating  the 
insignia  of  the  victim  about  to  be  sacrificed  after  ceremonial 
combat.  He  wears  a skull  as  helmet-mask  in  this  MS. 
In  the  Aubin-Goupil  tonalamatl  Tlauizcalpantecutli  wears 
a rod-shaped  nose  - plug  and  the  blue  breast-plate  of  the 
Fire-god. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

This  god,  as  Seler  indicates,1  is  a variant  of  the  planet 
Venus,  the  morning  star,  who  was  regarded  as  the  shooting 
god  and  who  was  perhaps  identical  with  Mixcoatl.  The 
Anales  de  Quauhtitlan  says  that : “ When  he  appears  he  strikes 
various  classes  of  people  with  his  rays,  shoots  them,  sheds 
his  light  on  them,”  and  these  several  types  of  people  thus 
shot  are  clearly  to  be  seen  in  Codex  Borgia,  and  in  the  corre- 
sponding places  of  the  other  manuscripts,  where  their  sequence 
is,  however,  varied.  That  they  stand  in  relation  to  the  quar- 
ters of  the  heavens  there  can  be  no  doubt,  but  these  quarters 
vary  with  the  several  codices.  Thus  in  Codex  Borgia  we 
find  the  jaguar  occupying  the  north,  while  in  Vaticanus  B 
and  Bologna  we  find  it  occupying  the  fifth  or  downward  direc- 
tion, and  in  this  varying  arrangement  we  probably  see  differ- 

1 Commentary  on  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  p.  287. 


NATURE  OF  TLAUIZCALPANTECUTLI  323 


ences  of  local  conception.  The  deities  or  figures  at  which 
the  god  hurled  his  spear  are  the  jaguar,  or  Tezcatlipoca, 
Chalchihuitlicue,  the  black  Tezcatlipoca  (probably  as  Tepeyol- 
lotl),  Cinteotl,  the  Tlatouani,  or  King,  and  the  Yayotl,  or  the 
symbol  of  war;  but  these  do  not  agree  with  the  “ classes  of 
people  ” shot  by  the  god  as  given  by  the  Anales  de  Quauhtitlan, 
which  states  “ that  in  the  sign  cipactli  he  shoots  old  men  and 
women,  in  the  sign  coatl  he  shoots  the  rain,  for  it  will  not  rain, 
in  the  sign  ail,  the  universal  drought,  in  the  sign  acatl, 
kings  and  rulers,  and  in  the  sign  olin,  youths  and  maidens.” 
This  seems  to  me  to  indicate  not  so  much  that  the  god  was 
identical  with  Mixcoatl,  as  Seler  states,  although  he  may 
have  had  connexions  with  this  deity,  but  that  he  typifies 
in  some  manner  the  evil  influences  of  the  rays  of  the  planet 
Venus  at  certain  times  of  the  year.  We  know  that  the 
Mexicans,  like  many  other  peoples,  believed  that  the  stars 
emanated  influences  good  and  bad,  and  as  Seler  himself 
states  in  his  essay  on  “ The  Venus  Period  in  Picture-Writing,” 1 
“ it  is  possible  that  we  have  on  these  pages  simply  an  astrolo- 
gical speculation  arising  from  superstitious  fear  of  the  in- 
fluence of  the  light  of  this  powerful  planet.  By  natural 
association  ol  ideas  the  rays  of  light  emitted  by  the  sun  or 
other  luminous  bodies  are  imagined  to  be  darts  or  arrows 
which  are  shot  in  all  directions  by  the  luminous  body.  The 
more  the  rays  are  perceived  to  be  productive  of  discomfort 
or  injury,  so  much  the  more  fittingly  does  this  apply.  In 
this  way  the  abstract  noun  miotl  or  meyotli  with  the  meaning 
‘ ray  of  light  ’ is  derived  from  the  Mexican  word  mill,  ‘ arrow  ’ 
. . . thus  miotli  is  the  arrow  which  belongs  by  nature  to  a 
body  sending  forth  arrows,  a luminous  body.  . . . When 
the  planet  appeared  anew  in  the  heavens,  smoke-vents  and 
chimneys  were  stopped  up  lest  the  light  should  penetrate 
into  the  house.  ...  It  is  hardly  possible  to  see  anything 
else  in  these  figures  struck  by  the  spear  than  augural  specu- 
lations regarding  the  influence  of  the  light  from  the  planet 
suggested  by  the  initial  signs  of  the  period.”  Seler  also 
points  out  that  we  possess  the  analogy  of  the  periods  in  which 
1 Bulletin  28  of  U.S.  Bureau  of  Ethnology,  pp.  355  ff. 


324  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


the  Ciuateteo,  or  “ spectre  women,”  send  down  similar  baleful 
influences  from  above. 


COY OLX AUHQUI  = “ PAINTED  WITH  BELLS  ” 

Relationship  : Daughter  of  Coatlicue,  sister  of  Uitzilopochtli  and 
the  Centzonuitznaua. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Stone-head,  from  Great  Temple  of  Mexico. — This  represents 
her  as  having  on  both  cheeks  the  sign  for  “ gold  ” and  “ bells,” 
hence  the  face  of  this  head  is  really  painted  ( xauhqui ) with 
bells  ( coyolli ).  As  a nose-ornament  she  has  a peculiar 
pendant,  consisting  of  a trapezoidal  figure  and  a ray,  the 
motif  of  which  is  partially  repeated  in  her  earrings.  Her 
headdress  is  a small,  close-fitting  cap,  the  front  of  which  is 
embroidered  in  a downy  feather-ball  pattern. 

MYTHS 

The  myth  which  describes  her  enmity  to  her  mother, 
Coatlicue,  and  her  slaughter  by  her  brother  Uitzilopochtli, 
has  already  been  recounted  in  the  section  dealing  with  the 
latter  god. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Coyolxauhqui’s  insignia,  as  seen  in  the  stone  head  of  her 
from  the  great  Temple  of  Mexico,  is  unquestionably  that  of 
a lunar  goddess.  Moreover,  the  terms  of  the  myth  referred 
to  above  make  it  plain  that  she  represented  the  moon,  who 
is  “ slain  ” by  the  first  blow  of  the  xiuhcoatl,  or  fire-snake 
(the  dawn).  The  fact  that  she  was  the  only  sister  of  the  four 
hundred  stars,  Centzonuitznaua,  probably  implies  her  lunar 
significance. 

TZITZIMIME  = “ MONSTERS  DESCENDING  FROM 

ABOVE  ” 


Minor  Name  : Petlacotzitzquique  “ Upholders  of  the  Cane  Carpet.” 


THE  TZITZIMIME 


325 


ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Certain  wall-paintings  at  Mitla  afford  a good  representation 
of  the  Tzitzimime,  who  are  represented  as  pulling  the  sun 
out  of  his  cave  by  a rope.  In  this  case  their  character  as 
stellar  deities  or  demons  is  well  exemplified.  The  face  often 
resembles  that  of  a death’s-head  and  the  hair  is  puffed  up 
in  wig  fashion.  In  Codex  Borgia  the  Tzitzimime  are  repre- 
sented as  female  figures  with  death’s-heads  and  jaguar- 
claws. 

The  insects  pictured  in  the  Codex  Borbonicus  are  un- 
questionably representations  of  the  Tzitzimime  gods  in  their 
demon  forms. 

MYTIIS 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A equates  them  with 
the  gods  of  Mictlampa,  or  Hades,  but  his  contemporary  who 
edited  the  Codex  Telleri an o -Remen sis  says  of  them  : 

“ The  proper  signification  of  this  name  is  the  fall  of  the 
demons,  who,  they  say,  were  stars  ; and  even  still  there  are 
stars  in  heaven  called  after  their  names,  which  are  the  follow- 
ing : Yzcatecaztli,  Tlahvezcal  pantecuvtli,  Ceyacatl,  Achitu- 
metl,  Xacupancalqui,  Mixauhmatl,  Tezcatlipoca,  and  Con- 
temoctli.  These  were  their  appellations  as  gods  before  they 
fell  from  heaven,  but  they  are  now  named  Tzitzimitli,  which 
means  something  monstrous  or  dangerous.” 

Tezozomoc  mentions  them  in  his  Cronica  Mexicana  in 
connexion  with  the  building  of  the  great  temple  at  Mexico. 
He  states  that  their  images  were  at  one  period  still  necessary 
for  the  completion  of  the  building,  and  alludes  to  them 
as  “ angels  of  the  air,  holding  up  the  sky,”  and  “ the  gods 
of  the  air  who  draw  down  the  rains,  waters,  clouds,  thunders 
and  lightnings,  and  who  are  placed  round  Uitzilopochtli.” 
He  further  says  that  these  “ gods  of  the  signs  and  planets  ” 
were  brought  to  the  sacred  edifice  and  placed  round  the  idol 
of  Uitzilopochtli. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

The  Tzitzimime  are  obviously  stellar  deities.  A myth 


326  STELLAR  AND  PLANETARY  DEITIES 


seems  to  have  existed  that  they  had  been  cast  out  of  heaven, 
and  may  perhaps  be  equated  with  that  relating  to  Xochiquet- 
zal.  I think,  too,  that  it  had  a connexion  with  the  myth 
which  told  how  Uitzilopochtli  routed  the  Centzonuitznaua, 
his  brothers,  who  were  also  stellar  deities  or  demons  of  dark- 
ness. That  the  Tzitzimime  were  so  regarded  was  probably 
because  they  were  seen  during  the  night,  or  perhaps  during 
eclipses.  The  list  of  them  includes  many  of  the  great  gods, 
especially  those  who  had  an  uncanny  significance,  as  Tepeyol- 
lotl,  Mictlantecutli,  Tlazolteotl,  Tezcatlipoca,  and  Itzpapalotl. 
The  Tzitzimime  are  equated  by  Seler  with  the  Sky  Supporters.1 

1 See  Commentary  on  the  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  p.  90.  It  seems  to  me  that, 
as  Tezozomoc  says,  these  were  gods  of  the  “ signs  and  planets,”  i.e.  of  the 
tonalamatl  in  its  augural  or  astrological  sense.  If  so,  the  definitely  astrological 
nature  of  the  tonalamatl  might  bo  argued  therefrom. 


CHAPTER  X 


GODS  OF  DEATH,  EARTH,  AND  THE 
UNDERWORLD 

MICTLANTECUTLI  = “ LORD  OF  MICTLAMPA  ” 
(REGION  OF  THE  DEAD) 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexican  Plateau. 

Calendar  Places : 

Lord  of  the  tenth  day-count,  ce  tecpatl,  and  of  the  tenth  week. 
Eleventh  of  the  thirteen  lords  of  the  day  and  fifth  of  the  nine 
lords  of  the  night. 

Symbol  : Skull,  or  bunch  of  malinalli  grass. 

Compass  Direction  : North. 

Relationship  : Husband  of  Mictecaciuatl  ; one  of  the  Tzitzimime. 
ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  14  : This  is  one  of  the  most  striking 
representations  of  the  Death-god  which  has  come  down  to 
us.  Here  he  is  depicted  as  a skeleton  with  a skeleton’s 
thorax  and  a skull  for  head,  the  arms  and  legs  painted  white 
with  yellow  spots  picked  with  red,  to  symbolize  the  bones 
of  a newly  flayed  person.  He  has  a large  rosette  at  the 
occiput  and  a flag,  both  painted  in  alternate  white  and  red 
cross-bands,  and  this  motif  is  carried  out  in  the  ends  of  the 
loin-cloth,  and  in  the  extremities  of  other  bands  and  stripes. 
He  presents  a burnt-offering.  The  symbolic  crossways  and 
the  owl  are  figured  before  him,  the  death-bird  being  surrounded 
with  paper  flags,  the  decoration  of  corpses  prepared  for 
cremation.  Sheet  15  : On  this  sheet  he  wears  the  death- 
symbols.  At  the  nape  of  the  neck  he  has  a paper  rosette,  de- 
corated with  red  and  white  cross-bands,  the  paper  flag  painted 
in  the  same  way,  broken  in  the  middle  and  bent,  and  an  ear- 
plug consisting  of  a human  hand.  His  symbol  in  this  place 

327 


328  GODS  OF  DEATH,  EARTH,  AND  UNDERWORLD 


is  a bunch  of  malinalli  grass.  Sheet  79  : In  this  repre- 
sentation of  the  Death-god  we  find  the  invariable  skeleton 
head,  but  the  body  is  painted,  like  that  of  the  priests,  in 
black.  The  nape-ornament  is  of  paper,  and  the  ear-plug 
is  a human  hand..  The  screech  owl’s  wing  also  appears. 
Opposite  him  is  a corpse  wrapped  up  in  a cloth  and  corded 
with  strings,  a paper  flag,  used  in  the  decoration  of  corpses 
prepared  for  cremation,  and  a cross,  apparently  made  of 
knotted  sheets  of  cloth  or  paper.  His  hair  or  wig  is  black 
and  curly,  some  of  the  curls  ending  in  eye-like  circles  with 
red  centres.  In  this  picture  he  sits  opposite  Tonatiuh,  the 
Sun-god,  and  thus,  perhaps,  represents  night  in  its  black 
aspect,  the  eyes  in  his  wig,  as  elsewhere,  symbolizing  the  stars. 
Sheet  57  : Here  he  is  placed  opposite  the  Death-goddess  and 
wears  the  usual  insignia.  The  ground  on  which  their  seats  are 
placed  is  not  simply  yellow,  as  in  the  other  sections,  but 
consists  of  alternate  fields  of  malinalli  grass  and  fragments 
of  skulls  in  the  style  of  the  hieroglyph  of  arable  land.  Both 
present  each  other  with  a naked  human  figure,  symbolic 
of  human  sacrifice.  Between  them  stands  a receptacle 
painted  black  and  studded  with  eyes,  with  red  bands  in  the 
middle  and  yellow  border.  On  the  left  of  this  stands  a dish 
filled  with  blood  and  smoking  hearts,  on  which  the  goddess 
is  pouring  fire  from  a vessel.  On  the  right  projects  the  body 
and  tail  of  a dragon,  which  is  seized  by  the  god.  In  the 
centre  is  seen  a skull  swallowing  a man  who  is  falling  head- 
foremost into  its  throat,  and  above  all  is  pictured  the  moon, 
without,  however,  the  usual  rabbit  appearing  in  its  circum- 
ference. 

Codex  Fej  erv  dry  -Mayer . — Sheet  37  : Here  Mictlantecutli 
is  placed  opposite  the  Death-goddess.  He  has  the  usual 
insignia,  but  wrears  black  garments,  decorated  with  eyes 
and  crossbones.  His  seat  is  made  of  ribs  and  a piece  of  skull, 
and  he  holds  a dragon  in  both  hands.  Between  him  and  his 
mate  a man  sinks  into  the  yawning  jaws  of  the  earth,  and 
above  it  is  a dish  with  a stone  sacrificial  knife. 

Codex  Vatican  us  B. — Sheet  21  : He  has  the  usual  skeleton 
head,  but  in  the  arms  and  legs  the  bony  structure  is  merely 


MICTLAXTECUTLI. 
(From  Cnilcs  liorgia,  sheet  13.) 


Tepeyollotl. 


(From  Codes  XutUill,  sheet  70.)  (See  page  332.) 

FORMS  OF  THE  t’X DEIIWORLD  DEITIES. 
(See  also  under  Ouetzalcoatl,  facing  p.  119.) 

328] 


STATUE  OF  AN  OCTLI  (DRINK)  GOD. 
Found  near  Vera  Cruz. 


INSIGNIA  OF  THE  DEATH-GOD 


329 


indicated  by  a yellow  colour  and  a black  design.  He  is 
clothed  with  a jacket  of  green  malinalli  blades  and  wears 
in  his  ear  a strip  of  unspun  cotton.  He  has  as  back-device 
a pot,  in  which  three  flags  are  stuck.  Sheet  34  : In  this  sheet 
he  is  represented  much  as  in  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  15.  Sheet  58  : 
Here  he  is  pictured  as  a black  god,  with  a skull  for  head  and 
seated  on  a chair  made  of  blood,  bones,  and  malinalli  grass. 
He  has  the  nape-shield  and  the  flag  inclining  forward,  and  a 
nose  like  a sacrificial  stone  knife. 

Codex  Magliabecchiano. — Mictlantecutli  is  represented  more 
than  once  in  this  codex,  importantly  on  pages  73  and  79. 
In  the  first  instance  he  is  depicted  with  blue-grey  body  and 
enormous  claws  on  hands  and  feet,  the  head  plastered  with 
the  yellow  patches  and  bloodstains  he  frequently  shows. 
The  head  is  that  of  a skull,  with  protruding  yellow  nasal- 
bone,  but  the  ground-colour  is  blue,  not  bone-colour.  He 
wears  the  “ night-hair  ” occasionally  associated  with  him, 
and  his  coiffure  is  decorated  with  small,  black,  festal  banner- 
ets, interspersed  with  what  appear  to  be  stellar  ey e-motifs. 
His  maxtli  appears  to  consist  of  a rope  or  twisted  piece  of 
cotton,  and  he  wears  wristlets  and  anklets  of  bright  red 
cotton.  The  necklace  is  reminiscent  of  that  worn  by  several 
of  the  Maya  deities.  He  sits  in  the  portal  of  a temple,  and 
before  him  squat  a number  of  men  and  women,  regaling  them- 
selves on  human  flesh  from  several  earthen  vessels  containing 
a head,  a leg,  and  an  arm.  The  second  picture  exhibits 
the  penance  done  before  him.  In  this  place  he  is  painted 
brown,  with  the  same  enormous  talons,  the  death’s-head  face, 
“ night-hair  ” and  bannerets  (yellow),  without,  however, 
the  accompaniment  of  the  stellar  eye-ornaments.  These, 
however,  appear  to  be  reproduced  upon  the  wrists,  knees, 
and  one  ankle,  and,  perhaps,  make  this  phase  of  the  god  a 
parallel  to  the  Greek  Argus,  the  “ eye-spotted  ” night.  On 
the  breast  depends  an  ornament  which  is  not  sufficiently 
clear  to  justify  its  description.  On  page  82  the  god  is  de- 
picted as  wearing  a garment  covered  with  crosses,  and  on 
page  88  as  standing  on  the  skull-altar  (see  Tezcatlipoca).  His 
wavy  hair  is  surrounded  by  a red  and  yellow  cotton  fillet, 


330  GODS  OF  DEATH,  EARTH,  AND  UNDERWORLD 


and  he  is  being  anointed  by  a priest  from  a vessel  of  blood, 
whilst  other  priests  stand  before  him  with  pots  full  of  blood 
and  human  hearts.  He  wears  a curious  blue  necklace  almost 
of  the  “ masonry  ” type  seen  in  Egyptian,  Greek,  and  Asiatic 
deific  ornaments,  and  a cotton  garment  with  red  bows.  A 
cotton  web  depends  from  his  blue  ear-plug. 

MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A says  of  Mictlantecutli : 
“ He  descends  for  souls  as  a spider  lowers  itself  with  its 
head  downwards  from  the  web.”  Later  on  he  states  that 
“ he  is  the  great  lord  of  the  dead  below  in  hell,  who  alone 
after  Tonacatecutli  was  painted  with  a crown.  . . . They 
painted  this  demon  near  the  sun,  for  in  the  same  way  as  they 
believed  that  the  one  conducted  souls  to  heaven,  so  they 
supposed  that  the  other  carried  them  to  hell.  He  is  here 
represented  [that  is  in  the  codex]  with  his  hands  open  and 
stretched  towards  the  sun  to  seize  on  any  soul  that  might 
escape  from  him.”  Later  he  states  that  Ixcuina,  “ the  goddess 
of  salt,  dirt,  and  immodesty,”  was  the  wife  of  Mictlantecutli. 
The  commentator  of  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  seems  to 
regard  Mictlantecutli  as  rescuing  souls  from  the  realm  of  the 
dead.  He  says  : “ They  place  him  opposite  to  the  sun  to  see 
if  he  can  rescue  any  of  those  seized  upon  by  the  lord  of  the 
dead.”  The  two  interpretative  codices  were  almost  certainly 
edited,  if  not  copied  one  from  the  other,  by  the  same  hand,  and 
it  is  such  passages  as  this  which  show  the  great  dubiety 
existing  in  the  minds  of  the  priestly  commentators  regarding 
the  precise  nature  of  the  Mexican  deities. 

Sahagun  in  the  Appendix  to  his  third  book,  the  first  chapter 
of  which  treats  of  burial,  gives  a prayer  or  address  to  the 
dead  which  mentions  Mictlantecutli,  and  which  states  that 
he  and  his  wife  Mictecaciuatl  await  the  deceased,  who  goes 
to  dwell  among  the  shadows,  “ where  there  is  no  light  or 
window.”  It  is  further  explained  that  when  he  arrived  in 
the  realm  of  the  god  of  the  dead  (which  has  already  been 
described  in  the  chapter  on  Cosmogony),  he  makes  him  an 
offering  of  the  papers  which  he  carries,  of  faggots  or  torches 


THE  LADY  OF  THE  DEAD 


331 


of  pinewood,  and  of  perfumed  reeds,  cotton,  mantles,  and 
costly  apparel. 

Boturini  and  Brasseur  give  a great  deal  of  matter  regarding 
this  god  which  is  absolutely  worthless,  as  does  Leon  y Gama, 
and  the  deity  has  been  in  some  manner  confounded  with  a 
god  Teoyaomiqui,  who  seems  to  be  quite  supposititious  in 
character  and  never  to  have  had  no  other  existence  in  the 
minds  of  Gama  and  his  copyists. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Mictlantecutli,  it  would  seem,  is  neither  more  nor  less  than 
a god  of  the  dead,  that  is,  his  original  conception  was 
probably  that  of  a prince  of  Hades,  a ruler  of  the  realm  of  the 
departed,  who  in  time  came  to  possess  the  terrific  aspect 
and  the  punitive  attributes  of  a deity  whose  office  it  was  to 
torment  the  souls  of  the  erring.  The  fact  that  he  presides 
over  the  eleventh  hour — the  hour  of  sunset — shows  that  he 
was  in  a measure  identified  with  the  night,  as  certain  aspects 
of  his  insignia  would  appear  to  show.  In  a manner  he  must 
be  regarded  as  the  earth,  which  in  its  form  of  the  grave, 
yawns  or  gapes  insatiably  for  the  bodies  of  the  dead.  (See 
Mictecaciuatl.)  He  appears  to  have  analogies  with  the 
Lords  of  Xibalba,  or  the  Place  of  the  Dead,  alluded  to  in  the 
Popol  Vuh,  of  the  Quiches  of  Guatemala.1 

MICTECACIUATL  = “ LADY  OF  THE  PLACE  OF 
THE  DEAD  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexican  Plateau. 

Minor  Name  : Chicunaui  cipactli  = “ Nine  Earth-monster.” 
Relationship  : Wife  of  Mictlantecutli. 

Calendar  Place  : 

Ruler  of  the  tenth  day-count,  itzcuintli. 

Fourth  of  the  four  guardians  of  the  Third  Venus  Period,  denoting 
the  north. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Vaticanus  B. — Sheet  90  : She  has  a skull  for  head, 
with  round  eye  and  marked  supraciliary  arch,  tousled,  dark 
1 See  L.  Spence,  The  Popol  Vuh.  London,  1908. 


332  GODS  OF  DEATH,  EARTH,  AND  UNDERWORLD 


hair  studded  with  eyes  symbolizing  night  and  stars.  The 
skull  and  body  are  painted  yellow,  and  one  breast  is  showing. 
Her  wig  has  eyes  for  ornaments,  and  she  wears  the  nape- 
ornament  of  paper  usually  placed  on  corpses.  Her  earring 
is  also  fashioned  after  the  ey e-motif.  The  feather  balls  at 
her  wrists  are  set  with  eye-like  jewels.  She  is  engaged  in 
thrusting  a mummy-pack  into  the  yawning  jaws  of  the  earth. 

Codex  Bologna  ( Cospi ). — Sheet  27  : The  date  “ nine  earth- 
monster  ” ( chicunaui  cipactli)  stands  here  beside  Micteca- 
ciuatl  as  her  hieroglyphic  name. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  57  : Here  she  is  represented  opposite 
Mictlantecutli.  She  has  a wig  decorated  with  stars.  The 
face  is  human,  but  the  fleshless  lower  jaw  resembles  the  sign 
malinalli.  Her  nape  ornament  of  paper  is  painted  red  and 
white,  and  her  costume  is  red  with  white  cotton  borders  and 
an  upper  border  of  variegated  white  and  yellow. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 
See  Mictlantecutli. 

TEPEYOLLOTL  = “ HEART  OF  THE  MOUNTAINS  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Tierras  Calientes. 

Relationship  : One  of  the  Tzitzimime. 

Symbols : 

A cave  (see  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  2). 

A marine  shell  ( Codex  Borbonicus).  See  also  Seler,  Gesammelte 
Abhandlungen,  vol.  i,  p.  606,  for  glyph  in  Codex  Bologna 
(Cospi). 

Calendar  Place  : Eighth  of  the  lords  of  the  night  ; ruler  of  the 
third  day,  and  of  the  third  week,  ce  mazatl. 

Compass  Direction  : South. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

In  Codices  Fejerv dry -Mayer  and  Vaiicanus  B the  face- 
paint  of  this  god  is  red,  and  in  the  latter  MS.  has  the  alternate 
red  and  yellow  cross-bars  of  the  red  Tezcatlipoca.  In  Codex 
Borgia  the  body  is  painted  black,  but  in  this  MS.,  as  well  as 
in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl,  the  upper  part  of  the  face  resembles 
that  of  Quetzalcoatl  in  its  decoration,  the  profile  being  of  a 


TEPEYOLLOTL 


333 


light  colour,  while  the  temporal  region  is  painted  differently, 
these  colours  in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl  being  separated  by  a 
black  line.  But  whereas  the  temporal  colouring  in  the  Vienna 
MS.  is  green,  in  Codex  Borgia  it  shows  the  alternate  black  and 
yellow  of  Tezcatlipoca’ s face-paint.  In  Codex  Borgia,  sheet  14, 
a beard  is  worn  and  a plug  is  in  the  nostrils.  The  region  of 
the  mouth  has  the  painting  of  a jaguar’s  skin.  The  hair  is 
puffed  up  in  two  pads,  symbolic,  perhaps,  of  the  mountainous 
region  with  which  the  god  is  connected.  In  Codex  I'elleriano- 
Remensis  he  wears  the  broad  necktie  of  the  rain-gods,  only 
painted  in  green  and  not  in  blue,  and  in  Codex  Borgia  shows 
Tlaloc’s  colours  in  the  loin-cloth,  fillet,  and  neck-ornament. 
In  this  MS.,  too,  he  is  represented  as  blowing  the  conch- 
shell,  and  here,  as  well  as  in  Codex  Fejerv dry -Mayer,  he  stands 
before  a building  which  has  the  cone-shaped,  high-pitched 
straw  roof  of  the  houses  in  the  tierras  calienies,  crowned 
with  a jagged  motif.  As  ruler  of  the  third  day-sign  and 
third  week  he  is  represented  as  a jaguar  pure  and  simple 
in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl,  T elleriano-Remensis  and  Borbonicus 
codices,  which  is  merely  a disguise  for  the  personality  of 
Tezcatlipoca,  as  is  shown  by  the  face  of  that  god  looking  out 
from  the  jaguar’s  head  in  T elleriano-Remensis. 

In  Codex  Borbonicus  he  is  more  unmistakably  represented  as 
Tezcatlipoca,  for  the  hands  and  feet  projecting  from  under- 
neath the  jaguar  skin  are  striped  like  those  of  that  .god, 
and  one  of  the  feet  wears  Tezcatlipoca’ s sandal,  the  itzcoatl 
(or  obsidian  snake),  whilst  the  other  is  torn  off  and  replaced 
by  his  smoking  mirror.  The  jaguar  of  Codex  Borbonicus 
has  other  portions  of  the  insignia  of  Tezcatlipoca  about  him, 
such  as  the  aztaxelli,  or  feather  head-ornament,  and  the 
anauatl,  or  white  mussel-shell  ring.  In  the  Codex  Borbonicus 
a large  marine  shell  or  conch-shell  appears  to  be  symbolical 
of  Tepeyollotl.  The  god  is  alluded  to  by  Sahagun  as  among 
the  unlucky  symbols.  He  figures  as  one  of  the  faces  of  the 
double-headed  Quaxolotl. 

MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Vaticanus  A says  : 


334  GODS  OF  DEATH,  EARTH,  AND  UNDERWORLD 


“ They  considered  Tepeyolotli  the  lord  of  these  thirteen 
signs  in  which  they  celebrated  his  festival,  during  the  four 
last  of  which  they  fasted,  out  of  reverence,  on  account  of  the 
earth’s  having  remained  after  the  deluge.  But  as  its  condi- 
tions were  disordered  or  filthy,  they  did  not  consider  the 
sacrifices  of  these  signs  as  good  or  clean,  but,  on  the  contrary, 
as  unclean,  and  they  applied  to  them  an  appellation  which 
in  common  phraseology  we  might  explain  by  the  term  ‘ sacri- 
fices of  filth.’  These  last  four  signs  in  which  they  fasted 
were  likewise  out  of  reverence  and  in  honour  of  Suguequezal 
(Xochiquetzal),  the  wife  of  Tonacatecotle,  whose  name 
signifies  the  lifting  up  or  raising  up  of  the  Roses,  for  they  say 
that  goddess  caused  the  earth  to  flourish.  This  proper  name 
might  be  written  Tiscuelutli,  which  is  the  Heart  of  the 
Mountain,  which  means  the  echo.” 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  says  : 

“ The  name  refers  to  the  manner  in  which  the  earth  was 
preserved  after  the  deluge.  The  sacrifices  of  these  thirteen 
days  were  not  deemed  good  ; they  might  be  interpreted  in 
Spanish  ‘ sacrifices  of  dung.’ 

“ The  sign  under  which  number  one  is  written  caused 
paralysis  and  evil  humours.  Two  was  appropriated  to  drunk- 
ards ; and  three  was  applied  to  the  earth.  Tepeolotlec 
presided  over  those  thirteen  days  in  which  they  celebrated 
a festival ; and  during  the  last  four  days  of  which  (where 
the  hands  are  marked)  they  fasted.  Tepeolotlec  means 
Lord  of  Animals. 

“ The  four  days  of  the  fast  were  in  honour  of  Suciquecal, 
who  was  the  man  who  remained  in  the  earth  which  we  now 
inhabit.  Tepeolotlec  is  the  same  as  the  echo  of  the  voice 
when  it  reverberates  in  a valley  from  one  mountain  to  another. 
They  bestowed  the  appellation  of  the  tiger  on  the  earth 
because  the  tiger  is  a very  courageous  animal,  and  they  say 
that  the  deluge  ceased  at  the  reverberation  caused  by  the 
echo  in  the  mountains.” 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

The  commentators  of  the  Interpretative  Codices  briefly 


NATURE  OF  TEPEYOLLOTL 


335 


explain  Tepeyollotl  as  “ echo  ” and  “ earth.”  As  Seler  states,1 
it  is  most  probable  that  he  is  a cave-god,  an  alien  barbaric 
deity,  perhaps  identical  with  the  god  whom  the  Maya  tribes 
of  Chiapas  called  Votan  or  “ heart.”  Seler  also  believes 
him  to  be  Tezcatlipoca  in  his  form  as  an  apparition.2  It  is 
strange  that  it  is  only  in  the  works  of  the  interpreters 
that  he  is  mentioned  at  all,  and  we  can  discover  no  precise 
locality  where  his  worship  was  celebrated.  The  interpreters 
also  designate  him  “ Lord  of  the  Animals,”  and  add  that 
the  name  of  jaguar  is  given  to  the  earth,  because  the  jaguar 
is  the  wildest  of  beasts.  It  may  be  as  Seler  declares,  that 
“ in  order  to  understand  and  explain  this  figure  we  have  to 
start  from  the  jaguar  ( ocelotl ).”  The  Indians  of  the  Vera 
Paz  district  in  Guatemala,  when  they  met  this  beast,  instead 
of  attacking  him  or  running  away,  knelt  down  and  began 
to  confess  their  sins,3  and  it  is  probable  that  some  such  species 
of  worship  was  paid  Tepeyollotl,  who  by  his  mouth-painting, 
and  as  ruler  of  the  third  day-sign  and  third  week,  in  the 
Codex  Borgia,  is  certainly  depicted  as  a jaguar.  But  it  seems 
possible,  too,  that  this  beast,  perhaps  because  it  dwelt  in 
caves,  and  because  of  its  terrible  nightly  roaring,  may  have 
symbolized  for  the  Mexicans  the  earth  itself  in  its  dangerous 
aspect  of  earthquake.4  The  Nagualists,  a politico-religious 
secret  society  of  post-Conquest  origin,  paid  especial  reverence 
to  the  jaguar,  whom  they  regarded  as  a beast-patron  or 
totemic  guardian.  It  is  clear  that  their  conception  of  him 
arose  out  of  that  of  Tepeyollotl. 

1 Commentary  on  Codex  Fejervdry- Mayer,  p.  43. 

2 See  Section  on  Tezcatlipoca. 

3 Las  Casas,  Apologetica,  e.  cxcix  ; Herrera,  4,  10,  c.  xiii. 

4 Seler  ( Commentary  on  Codex  Vaticanus  B,  p.  102)  sees  in  a passage  in 
Sahagun  (bk.  v,  c.  1)  an  association  between  the  omen  of  a jaguar  roaring  in 
the  mountains  by  night  and  the  echo  thereof  and  Tepeyollotl. 


CHAPTER  XI 

VARIANTS  OF  THE  GREAT  GODS 

ITZTLI  = “ STONE  KNIFE  ” (OBSIDIAN) 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico. 

Calendar  Place  : Second  of  the  nine  lords  of  the  night. 

Compass  Direction  : East. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Vaticanns  B. — Sheet  19:  He  looks  out  from  the 

open  jaws  of  a stone  knife,  which  is  designed  with  teeth  and 
the  socket  of  an  eye  above  them.  Otherwise  he  is  pictured 
as  a black  Tezcatlipoca  with  the  yellow  cross-bands  on  his 
face.  The  smoking  mirror,  the  badge  of  Tezcatlipoca, 
is  clearly  to  be  discerned.  The  clouds  of  incense  reach  a 
great  height,  and  are  set  with  feather-work.  He  wears 
the  blue  nose-rod  from  which  a little  plate  falls  over  the  mouth, 
and  he  has  a white  breast-ring. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  14  : In  this  place  he  is  represented 

with  his  hair  brushed  up  on  one  side,  over  the  brow,  the 
warrior’s  hairdressing,  and  the  forked  heron-feather  ornament 
in  his  hair,  part  of  the  warrior’s  dancing  attire.  The  smoking 
mirror  at  the  temple  is  given  with  great  clearness. 

Codex  Fejervary-Mayer . — Sheet  2 : The  one  foot  exhibited 
as  missing  or  torn  off  is  stuck  in  the  throat  of  a stone  knife. 
The  body-paint  has  perhaps  been  forgotten  here,  and  the 
facial  painting  differs  from  Tezcatlipoca’s  usual  adornment, 
being  perhaps  reminiscent  of  that  of  Tezcatlipoca-Itzlaco- 
liuhqui.  The  head  and  neck  are  wrapped  in  a cloth  with 
a fringed  hem,  and  which  must  be  regarded  as  decked  with 
feather  balls  on  the  surface  as  in  the  picture  of  the  red 

336 


'■yerce.'+ecnf  lj‘ 


Yacatccutli. 

(From  the  Sahagun  MS.) 


A tepitoton  or  model  of  Tlazolteotl. 


53(1] 


Itzcoliuhijui.  (From  Codex  Bologna,  sheet  12.) 
VARIANTS  OF  THE  GREAT  GODS. 


W vei  fit 


ITZLACOLIUIIQUI 


337 


Tezcatlipoca  in  Borgia  (sheet  11).  He  is  associated  with  the 
crossway  in  all  MSS. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

This  deity  is  a surrogate  of  Tezcatlipoca  in  his  guise  of  the 
obsidian  knife  of  sacrifice,  and  as  such  is,  of  course,  representa- 
tive of  the  paramount  connexion  of  that  god  with  the  ob- 
sidian cult  alluded  to  in  the  Introduction.  He  is,  indeed, 
nothing  more  or  less  than  a personalization  of  the  obsidian 
knife  ; his  name  implies  this  and  the  picture  of  him  in  Codex 
V aticanns  B (sheet  19),  where  he  is  seen  looking  out  of  the 
jaws  of  an  obsidian  knife  disguise,  affords  absolute  proof, 
if  more  were  required,  of  the  identification. 

ITZTLACOLIUHQUI-IXQUIMILLI  = “ THE  CURVED 
OBSIDIAN  KNIFE,”  “THE  BLIND  ONE” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico-Tenochtitlan. 

Minor  Names  : Cipactonal. 

Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  thirteenth  day,  acatl ; and  of  the 
twelfth  week,  ce  cuetzpalin. 

Compass  Direction  : South. 

Relationship  : Variant  of  Cinteotl : son  of  Tlazolteotl. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — The  god  is  indicated  by  a bundle  having  a 
peculiar  object  with  two  black,  longitudinal  stripes  for  a head. 
At  the  eye-level  a bandage  is  worn,  and  the  whole  is  crowned 
with  a hair  wig  and  bound  with  a double-jewelled  fillet.  The 
crown  of  the  “ head  ” is  also  indicated  by  two  longitudinal 
stripes  which  terminate  in  an  involuted  peak,  curving  back- 
wards. Two  malinalli  (grass)  stripes  are  worn  as  a breast- 
ornament,  and  the  lower  extremities  are  draped  with  a flowing 
cloth. 

General. — The  head  is  more  elaborately  shown  in  the  Mexi- 
can MSS.  proper.  Through  the  peak  is  thrust  a carefully 
inserted  arrow  and  its  anterior  edge  is  evenly  notched.  In 
Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  and  Codex  Borbonicus  the  face 
of  this  personage,  who  is  called  by  the  interpreters  “ the  curved 
22 


338 


VARIANTS  OF  THE  GREAT  GODS 


sharp  stone,”  Itztlacoliuhqui,  is  decorated  with  the  gold 
crescent  nasal  ornament  of  Tlazolteotl  and  the  octli-g ods. 
That  this  figure  is  the  god  of  avenging  justice  is  indicated 
by  its  bandaged  eyes,  which  recall  the  appearance  of  Tezcat- 
lipoca-Ixquimilli,  or  Tezcatlipoca  as  god  of  the  thirteenth  day- 
count.  The  stone  and  club  were  used  for  punitive  purposes, 
so  the  figure  symbolic  of  “ justice”  was  thus  represented  as 
a hard  stone. 

Codex  Fejerv ary -Mayer. — Itztlacoliuhqui  is  shown  here  as 
of  a blue  colour,  and  his  face  is  painted  with  blue  and  white 
cross-bands  instead  of  yellow  and  black,  like  Tezcatlipoca. 
He  wears  Tezcatlipoca’s  breast-ornament,  while  in  his  hair 
is  the  forked  adornment  of  heron-feathers. 

MYTHS 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  V aticanus  A says  : 

“ Yztlacoliuhqui  signifies  the  lord  of  sin  or  of  blindness, 
and  for  this  reason  they  paint  him  with  his  eyes  bandaged. 
They  say  that  he  committed  sin  in  a place  of  the  highest 
enjoyment  and  delight,  and  that  he  remained  naked  ; on 
which  account  his  first  sign  is  a lizard,  which  is  an  animal 
of  the  ground  naked  and  miserable.  He  presided  over  these 
thirteen  signs,  which  were  all  unlucky.  They  said  likewise 
that  if  false  evidence  should  be  adduced  on  any  one  of  these 
signs  it  would  be  impossible  to  make  the  truth  manifest. 
They  put  to  death  those  who  were  taken  in  adultery  before 
his  image  if  the  parties  were  married  ; as  this  not  being  the 
case,  it  was  lawful  for  them  to  keep  as  many  women  or  con- 
cubines as  they  pleased.  Ytzalcoliuhqui  is  a star  in  heaven 
which  as  they  pretend  proceeds  in  a reverse  course ; they 
considered  it  a most  portentous  sign,  both  as  concerned  with 
nativities  and  war.  This  star  is  situated  at  the  south.” 

The  interpreter  of  the  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  says  : 

“ Ytzlacoliuhqui,  the  lord  of  sin.  Ytzlacoliuhqui  was  the 
lord  of  these  thirteen  days.  They  say  he  was  the  god  of 
frost.  They  put  to  death  before  his  image  those  who  were 
convicted  of  adultery  during  these  thirteen  days  ; this  was 
the  punishment  of  married  persons  both  men  and  women, 


PAYNAL 


339 


for,  provided  the  parties  were  unmarried,  the  men  were  at 
liberty  to  keep  as  many  concubines  as  they  pleased. 

“ Ytzlacoliuhqui  was  the  lord  of  sin  or  of  blindness,  who 
committed  sin  in  paradise ; they  therefore  represented  him 
with  his  eyes  bandaged,  and  his  day  was  accordingly  the 
lizard  and,  like  the  lizard,  he  is  naked.  He  is  a star  in  heaven 
which  . . . proceeds  in  a backward  course  with  its  eyes 
bandaged.  They  considered  it  a great  prognostic. 

“ All  these  thirteen  days  were  bad,  for  they  affirmed  that 
if  evidence  should  be  adduced  in  these  days  it  would  be 
impossible  to  arrive  at  justice,  but  they  imagined  that  justice 
would  be  perverted  in  such  a manner  that  unjust  condemna- 
tions would  ensue,  which  was  not  the  case  in  the  days  im- 
mediately following,  when  if  evidence  was  adduced  they 
supposed  that  justice  would  be  made  apparent.  They 
believed  that  those  who  were  born  on  the  sign  dedicated 
to  him  would  be  sinners  and  adulterers.” 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

This  deity  is  a variant  of  Tezcatlipoca  in  his  character  of 
the  obsidian  knife,  the  god  of  the  stone  and  therefore  of 
blood,  avenging  justice,  of  blinding,  of  sin,  of  cold.  The 
obsidian  stone  was  regarded  as  the  instrument  of  justice, 
as  has  already  been  stated  in  the  section  on  Tezcatlipoca. 
The  figure  became  a general  symbol  of  all  things  hard,  and 
is  therefore  explained  by  the  authors  of  the  Interpretative 
Codices  as  “ the  god  of  cold.”  Frost,  ice,  or  low  temperature 
is  in  the  Sahagun  MS.  symbolized  by  a man  wearing  the  head- 
dress of  this  deity,  which  was  also  worn  by  Uitzilopochtli 
at  the  ochpanitztli  festival,  when  the  knife  of  sacrifice  had 
such  free  play.  The  manner  in  which  the  god  is  represented 
in  Codex  Borbonicus  as  blindfolded  is  probably  a late  con- 
ception of  him  as  the  god  of  justice.  But  he  seems  also  to 
have  had  a stellar  connexion  which  is  a little  vague. 

PAYNAL  = “ THE  HASTY” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico,  Tlaxcallan. 

Relationship  : Precursor  or  forerunner  of  Uitzilopochtli. 


3 tO 


VARIANTS  OF  TIIE  GREAT  GODS 


ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS. — He  has  the  stellar  face-painting,  and  wears 
a many-pointed  crown  of  yellow  feathers,  the  lower  part  of 
which  is  white.  The  front  of  this  white  portion  ends  in  three 
small  globes  or  bells.  At  the  back  is  a bow,  and  he  is  furnished 
with  an  ear-plug  and  nose-plug  of  turquoise.  On  the  head 
he  wears  a shell  ring  like  Uitzilopochtli  and  Quetzalcoatl, 
and  he  holds  a narrow  striped  banner  ending  in  a sort  of 
fleur-de-lis  motif.  The  shield  is  blue,  inlaid  with  turquoise 
mosaic.  He  has  a peculiar  skirt  with  a train  marked  with 
cross-hatchings.  The  banner  he  carries  is  a golden  one,  and 
he  also  bears  the  fire-drill.  On  his  face  is  painted  a chaffinch, 
which  composes  his  face-mask. 

FESTIVAL 

See  Uitzilopochtli. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Seler  identifies  the  god  with  the  morning  star.  Sahagun 
calls  him  “ the  messenger  ” or  “ page  ” of  Uitzilopochtli. 
He  acted  as  “ forerunner  ” of  that  god  at  the  panquetzalitztli 
festival,  thus  perhaps  signifying  the  manner  in  which  the 
morning  star  precedes  the  sun.  But  I think  the  chaffinch 
painted  upon  his  face  and  his  general  birdlike  appearance 
may  justify  us  in  concluding  that  he  was  developed  from 
some  such  form.  The  myth  which  alludes  to  Uitzilopochtli 
as  a “ little  bird  ” which  led  the  Azteca  into  Mexico  may 
be  a confused  form  of  an  older  story  in  which  a hero  of  the 
name  of  Uitzilopochtli  may  have  been  spoken  of  as  accepting 
the  augury  and  following  the  flight  of  a little  bird. 


YACATECUTLI  = “ LORD  WHO  GUIDES,”  OR 
“ GUIDANCE  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Plateau  of  Anahuac  (worshipped  by  Mexican 
merchants  while  at  home  and  when  travelling). 

Festival  : Panquetzalitztli. 

Symuol  : The  merchant’s  staff. 


YACATECUTLI’S  FESTIVAL 


341 


ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Sahagun  MS.  ( Biblioteca  del  Palacio). — The  ground  of  the 
face-painting  is  white,  but  portions  of  the  face,  especially  the 
forehead,  nose,  and  chin,  and  the  region  in  front  of  the  ears, 
are  brilliantly  coloured.  The  hair  is  puffed  up  and  is  bound 
with  bands  of  quetzal- feathers.  The  ear-plugs  are  of  gold. 
The  large  mantle  which  almost  covers  the  body  is  decorated 
with  the  cross-hatching  symbolic  of  water  and  has  the  red 
rim  of  the  eye-motif.  The  shield  bears  the  Greek  key  motif, 
such  as  is  seen  in  the  tribute-lists  of  the  Codex  Mendoza. 
In  his  hand  the  god  bears  the  bamboo  staff  of  the  merchant 
or  traveller,  which  typifies  his  nature  and  which  was  wor- 
shipped, as  being  symbolic  of  him,  by  all  traders. 

FESTIVAL 

Panquetzalitztli. — Yacatecutli,  says  Sahagun,1  was  the 
first  merchant  and  prototype  of  traffickers,  so  was  chosen 
by  the  merchants  as  their  god.  They  dressed  his  statue 
with  paper  and  greatly  venerated  the  staff  he  carried,  which 
was  of  massive  wood,  or  else  of  dark  cane,  very  light,  but 
strong,  such  as  the  merchants  carried  on  their  journeys. 
He  had  four  brothers  and  a sister,  also  reverenced  by  traders. 
He  was  usually  depicted  as  a man  on  a journey,  equipped 
with  such  a staff  as  has  been  mentioned. 

Arrived  at  the  place  where  they  were  to  pass  the  night, 
the  merchants  laid  their  staves  in  a heap  and  drew  blood 
from  their  ears  and  limbs,  which  they  offered  to  it,  burning 
incense  before  it,  and  prayingfor  protection  from  the  dangers  of 
the  road.  At  the  festival  of  'panquetzalitztli,  thousands  of  mem- 
bers of  the  powerful  Pochteca,  or  merchant  guild,  proceeded 
to  the  vicinity  of  Tochtepec,  where  they  invited  the  Tlate- 
lolcans  of  that  place  to  a festival  in  honour  of  Yacatecutli. 
They  decorated  his  temple  and  spread  mats  before  his  image. 
Then  they  opened  the  bundles  in  which  they  had  brought 
presents  and  ornaments  for  the  god,  and  placed  them,  along 
with  their  staves,  before  his  idol.  If  a merchant  laid  two 


1 Bk.  i,  c.  xix  ; bk.  ix,  passim. 


342 


VARIANTS  OF  THE  GREAT  GODS 


staves  at  the  feet  of  the  god,  that  signified  that  it  was  his 
intention  to  sacrifice  two  slaves,  a man  and  a woman,  in 
his  honour ; if  four,  he  would  devote  two  wretched  creatures 
of  either  sex.  These  slaves  were  covered  with  rich  mantles 
and  paper.  If  the  staff  represented  a male  slave,  it  was  also 
equipped  with  the  maxtli,  or  loin-cloth,  but  if  a female,  the 
uipilli,  or  chemise,  and  the  cneitl,  or  skirt. 

The  Mexican  merchants  then  accompanied  their  Tlatelolcan 
confreres  to  the  villages,  where  they  feasted,  drank  cocoa, 
and  smoked.  Quails  were  then  decapitated,  their  heads 
thrown  into  the  fire,  and  incense  was  offered  to  the  four 
cardinal  points.  An  address  wras  delivered  by  one  of  their 
number  practised  in  oratory.  The  magnificence  of  this 
festival,  with  its  richly  jewelled  accessories,  was  probably 
unsurpassed  in  Mexican  ritual,  as  on  this  occasion  the  Pochteca 
employed  their  entire  stock  of  trinkets  and  ornaments  for 
the  temporary  decoration  of  the  victims.  Yacatecutli  was 
also  associated  in  worship  with  Coyotlinauatl,  god  of  the 
guild  of  feather-workers  of  the  quarter  of  Amantlan. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Bancroft  1 connects  Yacatecutli  with  the  Fire-god,  with 
whom,  indeed,  Clavigero  would  seem  to  equate  him,  and  in 
describing  the  return  of  the  gods  in  the  twelfth  month, 
Sahagun  makes  both  deities  arrive  together.  Xiuhtecutli 
was  certainly  the  god  who  was  believed  to  settle  disputes 
at  law,  but  I am  unable  to  connect  Yacatecutli  with  him 
in  any  satisfactory  manner.  Yacatecutli,  “ the  lord  who 
guides,”  seems  to  me  a mere  deification  of  the  merchant’s 
staff,  an  artificial  deity  invented  as  the  patron  of  a caste 
in  an  environment  where  it  was  not  difficult  to  invent  gods. 
By  this  I do  not  mean  to  convey  the  impression  that  the 
staff  was  necessarily  his  earliest  form,  but  that,  whatever 
his  primitive  shape,  the  merchant’s  stick  came  to  symbolize 
him. 

The  names  of  Yacatecutli’s  brothers  and  sister  seem  to 
me  to  allegorize  the  circumstances  of  the  travelling  merchant’s 

1 Nat.  Rac.  Pac.  States,  vol.  iii,  p.  417,  note. 


YACATECUTLI’S  FESTIVAL 


343 


career  in  the  same  manner  as  the  names  of  the  companions 
of  a folk-tale  hero  may  have  a bearing  upon  his  story. 

Thus  Chiconquiauitl  (“Seven-rains”  or  “ All-weathers ”) 
may  portend  the  varied  climatic  conditions  which  the  chap- 
man has  to  face;  Xomocuitl  (“  Caught-drake”)  the  kind  of 
fare  he  may  expect  in  an  unfrequented  country;  Naxtit 
(“  Four-feet”)  may  typify  endurance  in  walking;  Cochimetl, 
(Sleeping-raagwef/)  may  apply  to  the  leaves  of  the  maguey- 
plant  which  shaded  the  traveller  from  the  heat  during  his 
noonday  siesta,  or  from  the  wind  if  he  used  them  to  construct 
a temporary  shelter,  as  was  often  done ; Yacapitzanac 
(“Sharp-nose”)  needs  little  explanation  in  connexion  with 
the  peddler’s  calling,  and  the  name  of  the  one  goddess  of  the 
series,  Chalmecaciuatl,  is  evidently  that  of  a tribal  deity  of 
the  Chalmeca,  with  whom  the  Mexicans  traded. 


CHAPTER  XII 


MINOR  DEITIES 

XOLOTL  = “ DOUBLE  ” 

Area  of  Worship  : Plateau  of  Anahuac. 

Minor  Names  : 

Chicuei  Mazatl  = “ Eight  Deer.” 

Chicunaui  Coatl  = “ Nine  Serpent.” 

Calendar  Place  : Ruler  of  the  seventeenth  day-count,  olin  ; of  the 
sixteenth  tonalamatl  division,  ce  cozcaquauhtli. 

Compass  Direction  : East. 

Relationship  : Twin  brother  or  variant  of  Quetzalcoatl. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — In  the  picture  of  Xolotl  on  the  left  side  of 
the  middle  lower  part  of  sheet  55  a resemblance  to  Quetzal- 
coatl is  noticeable.  On  his  head  is  the  peculiar  wedge-shaped 
Huaxtec  hat,  painted  half-red  and  half-blue,  which  is  one 
of  Quetzalcoatl’ s characteristics.  The  bone  dagger  symbolic 
of  self-torture  and  penance,  and  the  snail-shell  armlets 
he  wears,  are  also  reminiscent  of  Quetzalcoatl’s  insignia. 
His  face-painting,  however,  differs  from  that  usually  worn 
by  Quetzalcoatl  in  Codex  Borgia,  as  the  front  portion  of  his 
face  is  blue  and  the  part  near  the  ears  red.  His  body-paint 
is  blue.  Nor  does  he  have  a large  beard  or  fan-shaped  nape- 
ornament,  but  is  shown  wearing  the  Wind-god’s  breast- 
ornament  made  from  a sliced  snail-shell.  He  also  shows  a 
likeness  to  Quetzalcoatl  in  the  manner  in  which  his  loin- 
cloth and  fillet  are  rounded  off.  As  a travelling  god,  Xolotl 
is  depicted  in  Codex  Borgia  as  holding  a fan  similar  in  its 
three-flapped  wedge-shape  to  that  of  the  other  peripatetic 
deities,  except  that  it  has  a handle  shaped  like  a bird’s  head 

344 


XOLOTL  (right)  AND  TLALOC. 
With  sacrificial  and  fire-making  symbols. 
(From  Codex  Borbonicus,  sheet  16.) 


3441 


-« Vr-- 

iTTlIliimi-tr 


Xolotl.  (From  the  Codex  Borgia.) 
MINOR  DEITIES. 


[345 


XOLOTL 


845 


and  is  seemingly  composed  of  blue  coto’wga-feathers.  His 
travelling  pack  is  symbolized  by  a flowering  tree,  which  he 
bears  on  his  back,  while  his  travelling  staff  is  painted  tur- 
quoise colour,  is  decorated  with  the  chalchihuitl  ornament, 
and  is  completed  with  a flower.  In  the  picture  to  the 
right  of  sheet  36  Xolotl  presents  almost  a new  aspect,  although 
certain  of  his  attributes  bear  some  resemblance  to  those 
which  we  have  already  observed  as  being  peculiar  to  him. 
He  still  carries  a travelling-staff  with  a jewelled  head,  but 
in  this  representation  its  general  character  is  more  that  of  the 
rattle-stick.  His  body-paint  remains  the  same  and  he  re- 
tains his  blue  feather  fan.  His  pack  is  distinguished  by  a 
flower  to  serve  as  a connexion  with  the  florescent  tree 
carried  by  him,  as  described  elsewhere.  In  this  sheet  he 
is  represented  as  wearing  a long  beard  and  his  face-paint 
in  the  region  of  the  mouth  is  white.  His  face  is  altered  by  a 
peculiar  type  of  nose,  which  gives  him  a disfigured  appearance. 
The  god  of  monstrosities  on  sheet  10  of  Codex  Borgia  has  a 
similar  patch  of  white  about  his  mouth,  resembling  in  shape 
a human  hand,  a symbol  which  also  characterizes  the  face- 
painting of  Macuil  Xochitl.  Elsewhere  in  this  MS.  he  is 
represented  as  crooked-limbed  and  blear-eyed. 

Codex  V aticanus  B. — In  this  MS.  Xolotl  is  represented  as 
having  a dog’s  head  and  again  appears  in  the  garb  and 
ornaments  of  Quetzalcoatl.  In  Codex  Borgia  his  ears  have 
a rim  of  yellow,  evidently  intended  to  represent  dead  flesh, 
while  in  Codex  V aticanus  the  canine  character  is  indicated 
by  the  cropped  ears.  In  the  nostrils  is  a blue  plug,  the  orna- 
ment of  the  deceased  warrior,  denoting  that  this  is  the  dog 
which  accompanies  his  master  to  Mictlampa,  Place  of  the 
Dead,  and  assists  him  to  swim  the  river  which  encircles  it. 
This  distinguishing  plug  is  seen  in  Codex  Vaticanus,  but  not 
in  Codex  Borgia.  The  rest  of  the  god’s  attire  is  exclusively 
that  worn  by  Quetzalcoatl,  as  described  in  the  space  devoted 
to  that  god. 

Aubin  Tonalamatl. — In  this  MS.  he  again  takes  on  a canine 
appearance  and  is  clothed  in  many  respects  like  Quetzalcoatl. 
This  frequent  similarity  in  dress  between  the  gods  may  have 


346 


MINOR  DEITIES 


its  origin  in  the  diverse  meaning  of  the  word  coatl,  which, 
besides  meaning  “ snake,”  also  denotes  “ comrade  ” or 
“ twin.”  This  dog-like  creature  is  usually  portrayed  as  of 
a dark  colour,  black,  with  the  distinctive  cropped  ear,  while 
in  Codex  Borgia  he  is  depicted  with  jaguar-claws.  Xolotl 
has  the  face-painting  of  Quetzalcoatl  in  the  Mexican  MSS. 
proper,  that  is  in  the  middle  front  it  is  yellow  and  black 
at  the  sides.  He  wears  the  two-coloured  white  and 
brown  (jaguar-skin)  head-loop  with  rounded-off  ends,  which 
latter  form  is  also  continued  in  the  loin-cloth.  Both  these 
articles  of  dress  he  has  in  common  with  Quetzalcoatl. 

Codex  Telleriano-Remensis. — Here  he  is  depicted  with 
Tlazolteotl’s  spindles  in  his  hair  and  an  ichcaxochitl  of  unspun 
cotton,  as  well  as  the  head-loop  previously  described.  Only 
in  this  MS.  is  he  so  adorned.  The  instrument  of  self-morti- 
fication, the  bone  dagger,  juts  out  from  above  his  forehead, 
whence  issues  a trickle  of  blood,  sometimes  delineated 
symbolically  as  a feather-ball  string  completed  with  a 
flower,  and  at  others  represented  as  real  blood.  He  grasps 
an  obsidian  knife,  which  implement  also  projects  from  his 
mouth  along  with  a flower,  while  a copal  bag  is  portrayed 
in  front  of  him.  In  some  MSS.,  as  in  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis  and  Vaticanus  A,  he  is  represented  as  wearing  a 
mask  on  his  girdle. 

WALL-PAINTINGS 

Xolotl  seems  to  be  represented  on  one  of  the  wall-paintings 
at  Mitla,  where  he  is  characterized  by  the  physiognomy  of 
an  animal  with  projecting  upper  teeth.  He  wears  Quetzal- 
coatl’s  conical  cap  of  jaguar-skin  and  his  necklace  of  snail- 
shells.  The  dog’s  ears  seem  in  this  place  to  be  merged 
into  tufts  of  feathers. 

POTTERY  FIGURES 

Two  small  pottery  figures  of  Xolotl  found  in  the  Valley  of 
Mexico  insist  strongly  upon  his  animal  character,  but  in 
neither  of  these  is  the  precise  bestial  type  ascertainable. 


XOLOTL 


347 


The  first  shows  a face  ending  in  a blunt  snout  and  surmounted 
by  a kind  of  wig,  with  ear-pieces  rising  on  either  side.  What 
seems  to  be  a collar  of  feathers  surrounds  the  neck.  In 
the  other  he  is  represented  as  a little  bear,  or  dog,  without 
clothing,  but  having  Quetzalcoatl’s  sliced  snail-shell  breast- 
ornament.  A stone  head  of  him  found  in  the  Calle  de  las 
Escalerillas  in  Mexico  City  on  29th  October  1900  shows  a 
blunt,  almost  ape-like  animal  face  with  large  powerful  molar 
teeth,  dog-like  canines,  and  large,  sharp  fangs,  not  unlike 
those  with  which  Tlaloc  was  usually  represented.  Incised 
lines  represent  powerful  muscular  development  in  the  region 
of  the  nose  and  jaws.  The  type  is  only  generally  and  not 
particularly  bestial,  and  it  would  seem  that  it  was  the  aim 
of  the  sculptor  to  represent  a ferocious  animal  countenance 
without  laying  stress  upon  the  peculiarities  of  any  one  species. 

MYTHS 

The  most  important  of  the  myths  relating  toXolotl  are  those 
given  by  Sahagun  and  Olmos,  which  have  already  been 
described  at  length  in  the  chapter  on  Cosmogony.  The 
Codex  Vaticanus  A says  of  him  : “ They  believe  Xolotle  to 
be  the  god  of  monstrous  productions  and  of  twins,  which 
are  such  things  as  grow  double.  He  was  one  of  the  seven 
who  remained  after  the  deluge,  and  he  presided  over  these 
thirteen  signs  which  they  usually  considered  unlucky.”  The 
Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  describes  him  in  verbiage  almost 
identical. 

Juan  de  Cordova  in  his  Zapotec  Grammar  writes  : “When 
a solar  eclipse  occurred  then  they  said  that  the  world  is 
coming  to  an  end,  and  that  the  Sun-god  wanted  war,  and  that 
they  would  kill  one  another,  whoever  was  first  able  to  do  this. 
Likewise  they  said  that  the  dwarfs  were  created  by  the  sun, 
and  that  at  the  time  (that  is  during  the  eclipse)  the  Sun- 
god  wanted  the  dwarfs  as  his  property.  And  therefore 
wherever  dwarfs  or  undersized  persons  were  found  in  a house 
the  people  fell  upon  and  killed  them,  and  they  hid  themselves 
in  order  not  to  be  killed,  so  that  during  that  time  few  escaped 
from  their  fate.” 


348  MINOR  DEITIES 

One  of  the  hymns  or  songs  given  in  the  Sahagun  MS.  says 
of  Xolotl : 

Old  Xolotl  plays  ball,  plays  ball 

On  the  magic  playing-ground. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

The  Mexican  game  of  tlachtli  symbolized  the  movements 
of  the  moon  (but  more  probably  of  both  sun  and  moon). 
This,  perhaps  the  favourite  Mexican  amusement,  was  a ball- 
game,  played  with  a rubber  ball  by  two  persons  one  at  each 
end  of  a T-shaped  court,  which  in  the  manuscripts  is  sometimes 
represented  as  painted  in  dark  and  light  colours,  or  in  four 
variegated  hues.  In  several  of  the  MSS.  Xolotl  is  depicted 
striving  at  this  game  against  other  gods.  For  example, 
in  the  Codex  Mendoza  we  see  him  playing  with  the  Moon- 
god,  and  can  recognize  him  by  the  sign  ollin  which  accom- 
panies him,  and  by  the  gouged-out  eye  in  which  that  symbol 
ends.  Seler  thinks  “ that  the  root  of  the  name  olin  suggested 
to  the  Mexicans  the  motion  of  the  rubber  ball  olli  and,  as  a 
consequence,  of  ball-playing.”  It  seems  to  me  to  have 
represented  both  light  and  darkness,  as  is  witnessed  by  its 
colours.  Xolotl  is,  indeed,  the  darkness  that  accompanies 
light.  Hence  he  is  “ the  twin  ” or  shadow,  hence  he  travels 
with  the  sun  and  the  moon,  with  one  or  other  of  which  he 
“ plays  ball,”  overcoming  them  or  losing  to  them.  He  is 
the  god  of  eclipse,  and  naturally  a dog,  the  animal  of 
eclipse.  Peruvians,  Tupis,  Creeks,  Iroquois,  Algonquins,  and 
Eskimos  believed  him  to  be  so,  thrashing  dogs  during  the 
phenomenon,  a practice  explained  by  saying  that  the  big 
dog  wras  swallowing  the  sun,  and  that  by  whipping  the 
little  ones  they  would  make  him  desist.  The  dog  is  the 
animal  of  the  dead,  and  therefore  of  the  Place  of  Shadows.1 
Thus  also  Xolotl  is  a monster,  the  sun-swallowing  monster, 
like  the  Hindu  Rahu,  who  chases  the  sun  and  moon.  As  a 
shadow  he  is  “ the  double  ” of  everything.  The  axolotl, 
a marine  animal  found  in  Mexico,  was  confounded  with  his 

1 Bradford,  American  Antiquities,  p.  333  ; Schoolcraft,  Indian  Tribes,  vol.  i, 
p.  271  ; Von  Tschudi,  Beitrage,  p.  29. 


IXTLILTON 


319 


name  because  of  its  monstrous  appearance,  and  he  was  classed 
along  with  Quetzalcoatl  merely  because  that  god’s  name  bore 
the  element  coatl,  which  may  be  translated  either  “ twin  ” 
or  “ snake.”  Lastly,  as  he  was  “variable  as  the  shade,”  so 
were  the  fortunes  of  the  game  over  which  he  presided. 

At  the  same  time  he  seems  to  me  to  have  affinities  with  the 
Zapotec  and  Maya  lightning-dog  pechc-xolo  1 and  may  repre- 
sent the  lightning  which  descends  from  the  thunder-cloud, 
the  flash,  the  reflection  of  which  arouses  in  many  primitive 
people  the  belief  that  the  lightning  is  “ double,”  and  leads 
them  to  suppose  a connexion  between  the  lightning  and 
twins,  or  other  phenomena  of  a twofold  kind.  As  the  dog, 
too,  he  has  a connexion  with  Hades,  and,  said  myth,  was 
dispatched  thence  for  the  bones  from  which  man  was  created. 

He  is  also  a travelling  god,  for  the  shadows  cast  by  the 
clouds  seem  to  travel  quickly  over  plain  and  mountain.  As 
the  monstrous  dwarf,  too,  he  symbolized  the  palace-slave, 
the  deformed  jester  who  catered  for  the  amusement  of  the 
great,  and  this  probably  accounts  for  the  symbol  of  the  white 
hand  outspread  on  his  face,  which  he  has  in  common  with 
Xochipilli  and  the  other  gods  of  pleasure.  He  bears  a sus- 
picious resemblance  to  the  mandrake  spirits  of  Europe  and 
Asia,  both  as  regards  his  duality,  his  loud  lamentation  when 
as  a double-rooted  plant  he  was  discovered  and  pulled  up  by 
the  roots,  and  his  symbol,  which  may  be  a reminiscence  of  the 
mandrake. 


IXTLILTON  = “THE  LITTLE  BLACK  FACE” 

Minor  Name  : Tlaltetecuin  = “ He  who  strikes  the  Earth.” 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexican  Valley. 

Relationship  : Brother  of  Macuilxochitl. 

Symbol  : The  toualli,  the  four  balls  or  beads,  seen  in  the  Sahagun 
MS.  and  in  the  Codex  Magliabecchiano  (sheet  63)  as  a shield- 
device. 

Calendar  Place  : Day  ome  tochtli. 

Compass  Direction  : South. 

1 See  Seler,  Bull.  28,  American  Bureau  of  Ethnology,  p.  94. 


350 


MINOR  DEITIES 


ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Fej  ervary-Mayer. — Sheet  24  : Here  the  god  is  repre- 
sented opposite  Macuilxochitl.  He  wears  on  his  head  a 
white-fringed  cloth,  such  as  is  worn  by  Tezcatlipoca,  having 
on  the  top  a bunch  of  downy  feathers  with  a crest  of  four 
plumes  ending  in  white  tips.  He  has  a collar  made  of  verte- 
brae or  animals’  claws,  and  on  the  upper  arm  a ring,  furnished 
on  one  of  its  sides  with  a projection  tapering  to  a point. 
The  body  is  white  and  the  face  is  painted  black  and  white 
round  the  mouth.  Seler  in  his  Commentary  on  this  MS. 
(p.  127)  thinks  that  the  white  ball  or  disk  covered  with  a 
radial  design,  and  held  by  the  god  in  his  right  hand,  is  per- 
haps a symbol  for  ilhnitl  (“  day,”  “ feast”),  and  should  be 
compared  with  the  parti-coloured,  whorl-like  disk  which 
the  dancer  in  Codex  Telleriano-Remensis  (sheet  L,  verso  1) 
holds  in  his  hand,  and  which  represents  the  sign  of  the  eighth 
annual  feast,  the  ueitecuilhuitl.  The  crest  worn  by  him, 
which  is  composed  of  black  feathers,  is  the  crest  embellished 
with  quetzal- feathers  and  stone  knives,  as  in  the  Sahagun 
MS.  and  the  Codex  Magliabecchiano. 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheet  62  : In  this  representation  he  faces 
the  goddess  Xochiquetzal.  He  wears  the  face-  and  body- 
paint  of  a priest,  with  a white  angular  patch  about  the  mouth, 
sprinkled  with  ulli  gum.  His  crest  is  similar  to  that  described 
above.  The  breast-ring  seems  to  be  imbedded  in  a motif 
bearing  a resemblance  to  the  tlachinalli  fire-and-water  symbol, 
and  its  significance  in  this  place  is  hard  to  define.  From  the 
wrists  droop  elaborate  feather  ornaments,  depending  from  a 
bracelet  of  stone  knives.  VVe  seem  to  see  the  Dance-god 
in  this  place  in  his  ceremonial  condition,  as  the  ruler  of  the 
dance  which  preceded  human  sacrifice.  Sheet  64  shows 
him  similarly  attired,  but  without  the  priest’s  body-paint. 
He  seems  about  to  enter  the  dance-house  of  the  warriors, 
and  a courtesan  bears  him  company. 

Codex  Borbonicus. — Sheet  4 : Here  he  is  shown  opposite 
Ueuecoytl,  the  coyote  god,  engaged  in  the  motions  of  the 
dance.  Perhaps  this  position  is  more  eloquent  of  motion 
than  any  other  in  the  Mexican  MSS.  In  this  place  he  appears 


IXTLILTON 


351 


to  be  almost  identified  with  Macuilxochitl  (q.v.),  to  whose 
statuettes  in  the  Museo  Nacional  de  Mexico,  the  figure  bears 
a strong  resemblance. 

Sahagun  MS. — The  face-paint  is  black  and  the  god  wears 
a feather  comb  set  with  flint  knives.  He  has  a collar  of 
animal  claws,  most  of  which  are  those  of  the  jaguar,  and  on 
his  back  he  wears  a wing-fan  with  the  sun-banner  fixed  on 
it.  Round  his  shoulders  is  a paper  with  the  sun-signs  painted 
on  it.  His  feet  are  ornamented  with  bells  and  shells,  and 
he  wears  “ sun-sandals.”  On  his  arm  he  carries  a solar  shield 
and  in  his  hand  he  bears  a staff  with  a heart. 


NATURE  AND  STATUS 

Practically  all  that  is  known  regarding  this  god  is  recounted 
by  Sahagun,  who  says  of  him  : “ They  made  to  this  god  an 
oratory  of  painted  planks,  a sort  of  tabernacle,  in  which  his 
image  was  placed.  He  had  in  this  oratory  many  jars  full 
of  water,  and  covered  with  plates,  and  this  water  was  called 
tilatl,  or  black  water.  When  an  infant  fell  ill  they  took  it 
to  the  temple  of  Ixtlilton  and  opened  one  of  these  jars,  made 
him  drink  it,  and  the  malady  left  him.  If  one  wished  to 
give  a feast  to  the  god  he  took  his  image  home.  This  was 
neither  painted  nor  sculptured,  but  was  a priest  who  wore 
the  ornaments  of  the  god.  During  the  passage  he  was 
censed  with  copal.  Arrived  at  the  house,  he  was  met  with 
singers  and  dancers,  which  dancing  is  different  in  a manner 
from  ours. 

“ I speak  of  that  which  we  call  areyto,  and  which  they  call 
maceualiztli.  They  assembled  in  great  numbers,  two  and  two 
or  three  and  three,  and  formed  a circle.  They  carried  flowers 
in  the  hand,  and  were  decorated  with  plumage.  They  made 
at  the  same  time  a uniform  movement  with  their  bodies, 
also  with  their  feet  and  hands,  in  perfect  combination  and 
very  worthy  to  be  seen.  All  their  movements  accorded  with 
the  music  of  the  drums.  They  accompanied  the  instruments 
with  their  sonorous  voices,  singing  in  accord  the  praises 
of  the  god  to  whom  they  made  the  festival.  They  adapted 


352 


MINOR  DEITIES 


their  movements  to  the  nature  of  their  songs,  for  their  dances 
and  their  intonation  varied  considerably. 

“ The  dance  continued,  and  the  ‘ god  ’ himself,  having 
danced  for  a long  time,  descended  to  the  cave  where  the  octli 
was  stored  in  jars.  He  opened  one  of  these,  an  operation 
which  was  known  as  tlayacaxayotla  (‘  the  new  opening,’ 
or  ‘ the  opening  of  the  new  ’).  Then  he  and  those  who 
accompanied  him  drank  of  the  octli.  They  then  went  to 
the  court  of  the  house,  where  they  found  three  jars  filled 
with  the  black  water,  which  had  been  covered  for  four  days. 
He  who  played  the  role  of  god  opened  these,  and  if  he  found 
them  full  of  hairs,  dust,  charcoal,  or  any  other  uncleanness, 
it  was  said  that  the  man  of  the  house  was  a person  of  vicious 
life  and  bad  character.  Then  the  god  went  to  the  house, 
where  he  was  given  the  stuff  called  ixquen,  for  covering  the 
face,  in  allusion  to  the  shame  which  covered  the  master  of  the 
house.”  1 

From  the  foregoing  it  is  clear  that  Ixtlilton  was  a god  of 
medicinal  virtue,  the  deity  who  kept  men  in  good  health 
or  who  assisted  their  recovery  from  sickness,  therefore  the 
brother  of  Xochipilli-Macuilxochitl,  god  of  good  luck  and 
merriment.  His  temple,  composed  of  painted  boards,  would 
seem  to  have  borne  a resemblance  to  the  hut  of  the  tribal 
medicine-man  or  shaman.  A sacrifice  was  made  to  him 
when  the  Mexican  child  first  spoke. 

OMACATL  = “ TWO  REEDS  ” 

Sahagun  MS.  ( Biblioteca  del  Palacio). — The  regions  of  the 
forehead,  nose,  and  mouth  are  “ festively  ” painted.  He  wears 
a feather  helmet  and  a crown  of  spear-shafts.  His  overdress 
has  the  cross-hatching  which  usually  indicates  w^ater,  and  is 
edged  with  red,  decorated  with  the  ey e-motif.  Before  him 
is  a small  shield  with  a plain,  white  surface,  its  low-er  rim 
edged  with  white  feathers  or  paper,  and  in  his  hand  he  carries 
the  “ seeing  ” or  “ scrying  ” implement,  that  some  of  the  other 
gods,  noticeably  Tezcatlipoca,  possess.* 

1 Bk.  i,  c.  xvi. 

J See  also  Sahagun,  bk.  i,  c.  xv. 


THE  CIUATETEO 


353 


NATURE  AND  STATUS 

This  god  appears  to  have  been  partly  of  a convivial  nature 
and  presided  over  banquets  and  festivities  generally.  On 
the  occasion  of  a public  or  private  rejoicing  he  was  borne 
thither  by  certain  priests.  If  the  banquet  was  suitable  he 
praised  the  host,  but  otherwise  rebuked  him,  and  it  is  said 
that,  if  irritated  in  any  way,  he  -would  turn  the  viands  into 
hair  (as  did  certain  of  the  fairies  of  Brittany,  when  annoyed 
or  insulted).  The  night  before  a festival  a cake  like  a large 
bone  was  made,  and  this,  it  was  feigned,  was  a bone  of  the 
deity  himself.  This  cake  was  eaten  and  octli  was  drunk, 
after  which  spines  of  the  maguey  were  thrust  into  the  stomach 
of  the  idol.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that,  as  Sahagun  states,1 
Omacatl  was  solely  and  simply  a god  of  festivities. 

CIUATETEO  = GODDESSES 
CIUAP1PILTIN  = PRINCESSES 

Area  of  Worship  : Mexico. 

Calendar  Place  : Supposed  to  descend  to  earth  on  initial  days  of 
third  tonalamatl  quarter. 

Festival  : First  day  of  ce  mazatl  (movable  feast)  ; ce  quiauitl  (movable 
feast)  ; ce  ozomatli  (movable  feast). 

Compass  Direction  : West. 

Relationship  : Frequently  associated  with  the  Uitznaua. 

ASPECT  AND  INSIGNIA 

Codex  Borgia. — Sheets  47-48  : Five  figures  here  represent 
the  Ciuateteo  and  are  dressed  in  the  style  of  Tlazolteotl,  with 
the  fillet  and  ear-plug  of  unspun  cotton,  and  the  golden  nasal 
crescent  worn  by  that  goddess  and  the  octli- g ods.  In  each 
case  the  eye  has  been  gouged  out  and  hangs  out  of  the  socket, 
as  with  Xolotl.  They  wear  on  their  heads  a feather  orna- 
ment like  the  heron-feather  plume  of  the  warrior  caste,  but 
consisting  of  five  white  feathers  or  strips  of  paper  above  a 
bunch  of  downy  feathers.  At  the  nape  of  the  neck  the 
figures  wear  a black  vessel  as  their  device,  in  which  lies  a 
bunch  of  malinalli  grass.  The  upper  part  of  the  body  is 

1 Bk.  i,  c.  xv. 

23 


354 


MINOR  DEITIES 


naked,  and  round  the  hips  is  wrapped  a skirt  showing  cross- 
bones  on  its  surface  and  a border  painted  in  the  manner  of  the 
variegated  coral  snake.  The  resemblance  between  all  five 
figures  is  close.  Only  the  face-,  arm-,  and  leg-painting  is 
different.  In  the  case  of  the  first  the  colour  is  white  striped 
with  red,  in  the  second  blue,  in  the  third  yellow,  in  the  fourth 
red,  and  in  the  fifth  black.  All  hold  in  one  hand  a broom 
of  ?nalinalli  grass,  and  in  the  other  a black  obsidian  sacrificial 
knife,  a bone  dagger,  and  an  agave- leaf  spike,  both  furnished 
with  a flower  symbolic  of  blood.  They  inhale  the  smoke 
which  ascends  from  a black  incense  or  fire-vessel  standing 
on  the  ground  before  them.  A rubber  ball  lies  in  the  vessel 
of  the  first  figure  ; with  the  second  the  vessel  is  replaced  by 
a cross-way,  and  the  ascending  smoke  by  a centipede  issuing 
from  the  mouth  of  the  goddess.  With  the  third  a skeleton 
is  seated  in  the  dish,  holding  a heart  in  one  hand  and  a 
sacrificial  knife  in  the  other.  The  ascending  smoke  is  re- 
placed by  two  streams  of  blood  passing  into  the  mouth  of  a 
skeleton,  one  of  which  comes  from  the  mouth  of  the  figure, 
the  other  from  her  right  breast.  With  the  fourth  figure 
are  represented  a bunch  of  malinalli  grass  and  a variegated 
snake.  Nothing  here  enters  the  mouth  of  the  Ciuateteo, 
but  from  it  issues  a similar  snake,  and  another  hangs  on  each 
of  her  arms.  Before  the  last  figure,  in  the  dish  is  perched  a 
screech-owl,  and  a stream  of  blood  passes  from  the  mouth 
of  the  figure  to  that  of  the  owl. 

Codex  V aticanus  B. — Sheets  77-79 : Five  figures  are  here  also 
depicted  which  bear  a resemblance  to  Tlazolteotl,  but  are 
without  the  golden  nasal  crescent.  With  the  last  four  the 
same  curling  locks  of  hair  are  seen  as  in  the  case  of  the 
Codex  Borgia  figures,  but  the  first  figure  is  pictured  with  the 
hair  bristling  up  on  one  side,  as  worn  by  the  warrior  caste. 
The  eye  too  is  hanging  out,  and  the  headdresses  and  nape- 
vessels  resemble  those  in  Codex  Borgia.  In  the  majority 
of  cases  the  skirt  is  white  with  two  diagonal  red  stripes 
crossing  each  other.  Only  with  the  first  figure  is  it  painted 
red  with  white  cross-bones.  The  last  figure  has  a skirt 
made  of  strips  of  malinalli  grass  fastened  by  a girdle  made  of 


THE  CIUATETEO 


355 


a skeletal  spinal  column,  on  which  is  set  a dead  man’s  skull 
as  back-mirror.  All  five  wear  the  men’s  loin-cloth  besides 
the  skirt.  They  carry  the  symbols  of  sacrifice  and  morti- 
fication as  in  the  Codex  Borgia,  and  similar  incense-vessels 
stand  before  them. 

MYTHS 

Sahagun  says  of  the  Ciuateteo  : 

“ The  Ciuapipiltin,  the  noble  women,  were  those  who  had 
died  in  childbed.  They  were  supposed  to  wander  through 
the  air,  descending  when  they  wished  to  the  earth  to  afflict 
children  with  paralysis  and  other  maladies.  They  haunted 
cross-roads  to  practise  their  maleficent  deeds,  and  they  had 
temples  built  at  these  places,  where  bread  offerings  in  the 
shape  of  butterflies  were  made  to  them,  also  the  thunder- 
stones  which  fall  from  the  sky.  Their  faces  were  white, 
and  their  arms,  hands,  and  legs  were  coloured  with  a white 
powder,  ticitl  (chalk).  Their  ears  were  gilded  and  their 
hair  done  in  the  manner  of  the  great  ladies.  Their  clothes 
were  striped  with  black,  their  skirts  barred  in  different  colours, 
and  their  sandals  were  white.”  He  further  relates  (bk.  vi, 
c.  xxix)  that,  when  a woman  who  had  died  in  her  first  child- 
bed was  buried  in  the  temple-court  of  the  Ciuateteo,  her 
husband  and  his  friends  watched  the  body  all  night  in  case 
young  braves  or  magicians  should  seek  to  obtain  the  hair 
or  fingers  as  protective  talismans. 

NATURE  AND  STATUS 

That  the  witches’  sabbath  was  quite  as  famous  or  infamous 
an  institution  in  ancient  Mexico  as  in  mediaeval  Europe  is 
testified  to  by  the  numerous  accounts  of  the  missionary 
chroniclers,  which  are  further  corroborated  by  the  native 
manuscripts.  But  in  the  days  prior  to  the  coming  of  the 
Spaniards,  it  was  thought  of  as  being  celebrated  by  the  dead 
rather  than  the  living.  The  Ciuateteo,  or  haunting  mothers, 
were  those  women  who  had  died  in  their  first  child-bed,  and 
who,  out  of  envy  for  their  more  fortunate  sisters  and  their 
offspring,  continued  to  haunt  the  world  at  certain  fixed 


356 


MINOR  DEITIES 


periods,  wreaking  their  spite  upon  all  who  were  so  unlucky 
as  to  cross  their  path.  They  are  represented  in  the  ancient 
paintings  as  dressed  in  the  garments  and  insignia  of  the  god- 
dess Tlazolteotl,  the  witch  par  excellence,  with  a fillet  and  ear- 
plug of  unspun  cotton,  a golden  crescent-shaped  nasal  orna- 
ment, empty  eye-sockets,  and  the  heron-feather  headdress 
of  the  warrior  caste,  for  the  woman  who  died  in  child-bed 
was  regarded  as  equally  heroic  with  the  man  who  perished 
in  battle.  The  upper  parts  of  their  bodies  were  nude,  and 
round  the  hips  they  wore  a skirt  on  which  cross-bones  were 
painted.  They  carried  the  witch's  broom  of  malinalli  grass, 
a symbol  of  death,  and  they  are  sometimes  associated  with 
the  snake,  screech-owl,  and  other  animals  of  ill-omen.  The 
face  was  thickly  powdered  with  white  chalk,  and  the  region 
of  the  mouth,  in  some  cases,  decorated  with  the  figure  of  a 
butterfly.  These  furies  were  supposed  to  dwell  in  the  region 
of  the  west,  and  as  some  compensation  for  their  early  detach- 
ment from  the  earth-life,  were  permitted  to  accompany  the 
sun  in  his  course  from  noon  to  sunset,  just  as  the  dead  warriors 
did  from  sunrise  to  noon.  At  night  they  left  their  occidental 
abode,  the  Ciutlampa,  or  “ Place  of  Women,”  and  revisited 
the  glimpses  of  the  moon  in  search  of  the  feminine  gear 
they  had  left  behind  them — the  spindles,  work-baskets,  and 
other  articles  used  by  Mexican  women.  The  Ciuateteo 
were  especially  potent  for  evil  in  the  third  quarter  of  the 
astrological  year,  and  those  who  were  so  luckless  as  to  meet 
them  during  that  season  became  crippled  or  epileptic.  The 
fingers  and  hands  of  women  who  had  died  in  bringing  forth 
were  believed  by  magicians,  soldiers,  and  thieves  to  have  the 
property  of  crippling  and  paralysing  their  enemies  or  those 
who  sought  to  hinder  their  nefarious  calling,  precisely  as 
Irish  burglars  formerly  believed  that  the  hand  of  a corpse 
grasping  a candle,  which  they  called  “ the  hand  of  glory,” 
could  ensure  sound  sleep  in  the  inmates  of  any  house  they 
might  enter. 

Says  Sahagun  : “ It  was  said  that  they  vented  their  wrath 
on  people  and  bewitched  them.  When  anyone  is  possessed 
by  the  demons,  with  a wry  mouth  and  disturbed  eyes,  with 


THE  CIUATETEO  AS  WITCHES 


357 


clenched  hands  and  inturned  feet,  wringing  his  hands  and 
foaming  at  the  mouth,  they  say  that  he  has  linked  himself 
to  a demon  ; the  Ciuateteo,  housed  by  the  crossways,  have 
taken  his  form.” 

From  this  and  other  passages  we  may  be  justified  in  think- 
ing that  these  dead  women  were  also  regarded  as  succubi, 
haunters  of  men,  compelling  them  to  dreadful  amours,  and 
that  they  were  credited  with  the  evil  eye  is  evident  from  the 
statement  that  their  glances  caused  helpless  terror  and 
brought  convulsions  upon  children,  and  that  their  jealousy 
of  the  handsome  was  proverbial. 

The  divine  patroness  of  these  witches  (for  “ witches  ” 
they  are  called  by  the  old  friar  who  interprets  the  Codex 
Telleriano-Remensis),  who  flew  through  the  air  upon  their 
broomsticks  and  met  at  cross-roads,  was  Tlazolteotl,  a divinity 
who,  like  all  deities  of  growth,  possessed  a plutonic  significance. 
The  broom  is  her  especial  symbol,  and  in  Codex  Fejervary- 
Mayer  (sheet  17)  we  have  a picture  of  her  which  represents 
her  as  the  traditional  witch,  naked,  wearing  a peaked  hat, 
and  mounted  upon  a broomstick.  In  other  places  she  is 
seen  standing  beside  a house  accompanied  by  an  owl,  the 
whole  representing  the  witch’s  dwelling,  with  medicinal 
herbs  drying  beneath  the  eaves.  Thus  the  evidence  that 
the  haunting  mothers  and  their  patroness  present  an  exact 
parallel  with  the  witches  of  Europe  seems  complete,  and  should 
provide  those  who  regard  witchcraft  as  a thing  essentially 
European  with  considerable  food  for  thought.  The  sorcery 
cult  of  the  Mexican  Nagualists  of  post-Columbian  times  was 
also  permeated  with  practices  similar  to  those  of  European 
witchcraft,  and  we  read  of  its  adherents  smearing  themselves 
with  ointment  to  bring  about  levitation,  flying  through  the 
air,  and  engaging  in  wild  and  lascivious  dances,  precisely 
as  did  the  adherents  of  Vaulderie,  or  the  worshippers  of  the 
Italian  Aradia. 

There  are  not  wanting  signs  that  living  women  of  evil 
reputation  desired  to  associate  themselves  with  the  Ciuateteo. 
Says  the  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticamis  A : “ The  first 

of  the  fourteen  day-signs,  the  house,  they  considered  un- 


358 


MINOR  DEITIES 


fortunate,  because  they  said  that  demons  came  through  the 
air  on  that  sign  in  the  figures  of  women,  such  as  we  designate 
witches,  who  usually  went  to  the  highways,  where  they  met 
in  the  form  of  a cross,  and  to  solitary  places,  and  that  when 
any  bad  woman  wished  to  absolve  herself  of  her  sins,  she 
went  alone  by  night  to  these  places,  and  took  off  her  garments 
and  sacrificed  there  with  her  tongue  (that  is,  drew  blood  from 
her  tongue),  and  left  the  clothes  which  she  had  carried  and 
returned  naked  as  the  sign  of  the  confession  of  her  sins.” 
The  temples  or  shrines  of  the  Ciuateteo  were  situated  at 
cross-roads,  the  centres  of  ill-omen  throughout  the  world. 
That  they  had  a connexion  with  the  lightning  is  shown  by 
the  fact  that  cakes  in  the  shape  of  butterflies  and  “ thunder- 
stones  ” were  offered  them.  But  they  were  also  connected 
with  baneful  astral  or  astrological  influences,  and  are  several 
times  alluded  to  in  the  Interpretative  Codices  in  this  con- 
nexion. The  seasons  at  which  they  were  most  potent  for  evil 
were  those  connected  with  the  western  department  of  the 
tonalamatl,  the  five  days  which  compose  the  first  column 
of  the  third  quarter  disposed  in  columns  of  five  members, 
ce  mazail , ce  quiauitl,  ce  ozomatli,  ce  calli,  ce  quauhtli. 


APPENDIX 


THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR 
CALENDAR 

THE  TONALAMATL 

A THOROUGH  knowledge  of  the  tonalamatl  is  essential 
in  order  to  grasp  the  fundamentals  of  Mexican  religion, 
but  its  significance  has  perhaps  been  heightened  by  the 
difficulties  which  certainly  attend  its  consideration.  I have 
endeavoured  to  present  the  subject  here  as  simply  as  possible, 
and  to  keep  all  distracting  side-issues  for  later  consideration 
and  away  from  the  main  proof.  Most  of  these,  indeed,  have  been 
created  by  writers  who  have  too  closely  identified  the  tonalamatl 
with  the  solar  calendar,  and  have  added  to  the  obscurity  of  the 
subject  by  the  introduction  of  abstruse  astronomical  hypotheses 
which  have  only  a problematical  connexion  with  it.1 

The  word  tonalamatl  means  “ Book  of  the  Good  and  Bad  Days,” 
and  it  is  primarily  a “ Book  of  Fate,”  from  which  the  destiny 
of  children  born  on  such  and  such  a day,  or  the  result  of  any  course 
to  be  taken  or  any  venture  made  on  any  given  day,  was  forecasted 
by  divinatory  methods,  similar  to  those  which  have  been  employed 
by  astrologers  in  many  parts  of  the  world  in  all  epochs.  The 
tonalamatl  was,  therefore,  in  no  sense  a time-count  or  calendar 
proper,  to  which  purpose  it  was  not  well  suited  ; but  it  was  cap- 
able of  being  adapted  to  the  solar  calendar.  It  is  equally  incorrect 
to  speak  of  the  tonalamatl  as  a “ ritual  calendar.”  It  has  nothing 
to  do  directly  with  ritual  or  religious  ceremonial,  and  although 
certain  representations  on  some  tonalamatls  depict  ritual  acts, 
no  details  or  directions  for  their  operation  are  supplied. 

The  original  tonalamatl  was  probably  a day-count  based  on  a 
lunar  reckoning.  The  symbols  appear  to  have  been  those  of  the 

1 The  most  convincing  modern  writers  on  the  tonalamatl  are  Morley,  Bow- 
ditch,  De  Jonghe,  and  Seler.  A bibliography  of  works  on  the  subject  will 
be  found  at  the  end  of  this  appendix. 

359 


360  THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 


gods  or  other  mythological  figures.  Thus  cipactli  was  merely 
the  earth-monster,  quauhtli  the  eagle,  a surrogate  for  the  Sun- 
god,  and  so  on.  Later  the  tonalamatl  lost  its  significance  as  a 
time-count  when  it  was  superseded  as  such  by  the  solar  calendar. 
It  then  took  on  the  complexion  of  a book  of  augury,  so  that  the 
temporal  connexion  it  had  with  the  gods  was  altered  to  a purely 
augural  one.  The  various  days  thus  became  significant  for 
good  or  evil  according  to  the  nature  of  the  gods  who  presided 
over  them,  or  over  the  precise  hour  in  which  a subject  was  born 
or  any  act  done.  As  in  astrology,  a kind  of  balance  was  held 
between  good  and  evil,  so  that  if  the  god  presiding  over  the  day 
was  inauspicious,  his  influence  might,  in  some  measure,  be  coun- 
teracted by  that  of  the  deity  who  presided  over  the  hour  in  which 
a child  first  saw  the  light  or  an  event  occurred. 

DAY-SIGNS 

The  tonalamatl  was  composed  of  20  day-signs  or  hieroglyphs 
repeated  13  times,  or  260  day-signs  in  all.  The  origin  of  these 
has  already  been  treated  of  by  Seler  in  Bulletin  28  of  the  Bureau 
of  American  Ethnology,  pp.  38  ff.  These  260  days  were  usually 
divided  into  20  groups  of  13  days  each,  sometimes  called  “ weeks.” 
To  effect  this  division  the  numbers  1 to  13  were  added  to  the 
20  day-signs  in  continuous  series  as  follow  : 


No. 

Name. 

Sign. 

No. 

Name. 

Sign. 

1 

cipactli 

crocodile 

11 

ozomatli 

monkey 

2 

eecatl 

wind 

12 

malinalli 

grass 

3 

calli 

house 

13 

acatl 

reed 

4 

euetzpallin 

lizard 

1 

ocelotl 

ocelot 

5 

coatl 

serpent 

2 

quauhtli 

eagle 

6 

miquiztli 

death’s-head 

3 

cozcaquauhtli 

vulture 

7 

mazatl 

deer 

4 

ollin 

motion 

8 

tochtli 

rabbit 

5 

tecpatl 

flint  knife 

9 

atl  • 

water 

6 

quiauitl 

rain 

10 

itzcuintli 

dog 

7 

xochitl 

flower 

and  so  on.  It  will  be  seen  from  this  list  that  the  fourteenth 
day-sign  takes  the  number  1 again.  Each  of  the  day-signs 
under  this  arrangement  has  a number  that  does  not  recur  in 
connexion  with  that  sign  for  a space  of  260  days,  as  is  proved 
by  the  circumstance  that  the  numbers  1 of  the  day-signs  and 

1 We  speak  of  “ numbers.”  More  accurately,  the  numbers  employed 
by  the  Mexicans  were  merely  simple  dots.  Thus  a single  dot  represented 
our  numeral  1,  and  thirteen  dots  our  numeral  13. 


TABLE  OF  THE  TONALAMATL 


361 


figures  (20  to  13),  if  multiplied  together,  give  as  a product  260, 
the  exact  number  of  days  in  the  tonalamatl. 

The  combination  of  signs  and  figures  thus  provided  each  day 
in  the  tonalamatl  with  an  entirely  distinct  description.  For 
example  : the  first  day,  cipactli,  was  in  its  first  occurrence  1 
cipactli ; in  its  second  8 cipactli ; in  its  third  2 cipactli ; in  its 
fourth  9 cipactli,  and  so  on. 

No  day  in  the  tonalamatl  was  simply  described  as  cipactli, 
coatl,  or  calli,  and  before  its  name  was  complete  it  was 
necessary  to  prefix  to  it  one  of  the  numbers  from  1 to  13  as  its 
incidence  chanced  to  fall.  Thus  it  was  designated  as  ce  cipactli 
(one  crocodile)  or  ome  coatl  (two  snake)  as  the  case  might  be. 
Each  of  the  20  groups  of  13  days  (which  are  sometimes  called 
“ weeks  ”)  was  known  as  a division  by  the  name  of  the  first  day 
of  the  group,  as  ce  cipactli  (one  crocodile),  ce  ocelotl  (one  ocelot), 
ce  mazatl  (one  deer),  and  so  on.  A model  tonalamatl  would  thus 
have  appeared  as  follows  : 


Ce  Cipactli 

(1)  cipactli 

(2)  eecatl 

(3)  calli 

(4)  cuetzpallin 

(5)  coatl 

(6)  miquiztli 

(7)  mazatl 

(8)  tochtli 

(9)  atl 

(10)  itzcuintli 

(11)  ocomatli 

(12)  malinalli 

(13)  acatl. 

Ce  Ocelotl 

(1)  ocelotl 

(2)  quauhtli 

(3)  cozcaquauhtli 

(4)  ollin 

(5)  tecpatl 

(6)  quiauitl 

(7)  xochitl 

(8)  cipactli 

(9)  eecatl 

(10)  calli 

(11)  cuetzpallin 

(12)  coatl 

(13)  miquiztli 

Ce  Mazatl 

(1)  mazatl 

(2)  tochtli 


(3)  atl 

(4)  itzcuintli 

(5)  ocomatli 

(6)  malinalli 

(7)  acatl 

(8)  ocelotl 

(9)  quauhtli 

(10)  cozcaquauhtli 

(11)  ollin 

(12)  tecpatl 

(13)  quiauitl 

Ce  Xochitl 

(1)  xochitl 

(2)  cipactli 

(3)  eecatl 

(4)  calli 

(5)  cuetzpallin 

(6)  coatl 

(7)  miquiztli 

(8)  mazatl 

(9)  tochtli 

(10)  atl 

(11)  itzcuintli 

(12)  ocomatli 

(13)  malinalli 

Ce  Acatl 

(1)  acatl 

(2)  ocelotl 

(3)  quauhtli 

(4)  cozcaquauhtli 

(5)  ollin 


(6)  tecpatl 

(7)  quiauitl 

(8)  xochitl 

(9)  cipactli 

(10)  eecatl 

(11)  calli 

(12)  cuetzpallin 

(13)  coatl 

Ce  Miquiztli 

(1)  miquiztli 

(2)  mazatl 

(3)  tochtli 

(4)  atl 

(5)  itzcuintli 

(6)  ocomatli 

(7)  malinalli 

(8)  acatl 

(9)  ocelotl 

(10)  quauhtli 

(11)  cozcaquauhtli 

(12)  ollin 

(13)  tecpatl 

Ce  Quiauitl 

(1)  quiauitl 

(2)  xochitl 

(3)  cipactli 

(4)  eecatl 

(5)  calli 

(6)  cuetzpallin 

(7)  coatl 

1 (8)  miquiztli 


(9)  mazatl 

(10)  tochtli 

(11)  atl 

(12)  itzcuintli 

(13)  ocomatli 

Ce  Malinalli 

(1)  malinalli 

(2)  acatl 

(3)  ocelotl 

(4)  quauhtli 

(5)  cozcaquauhtli 

(6)  ollin 

(7)  tecpatl 

(8)  quiauhitl 

(9)  xochitl 

(10)  cipactli 

(11)  eecatl 

(12)  calli 

(13)  cuetzpallin 

Ce  Coatl 

(1)  coatl 

(2)  miquiztli 

(3)  mazatl 

(4)  tochtli 

(5)  atl 

(6)  itzcuintli 

(7)  ocomatli 

(8)  malinalli 

(9)  acatl 

(10)  ocelotl 

(11)  quauhitl 


362  THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 


(12)  eozcaquauhtli 

(13)  ollin 

Ce  Tecpatl 

(1)  tecpatl 

(2)  quiauitl 

(3)  xochitl 

(4)  cipactli 

(5)  eecatl 

(6)  calli 

(7)  cuetzpallin 

(8)  coatl 

(9)  miquiztli 

(10)  mazatl 

(11)  tochtli 

(12)  atl 

(13)  itzcuintli 

Ce  Ozomatli 

(1)  ozomatli 

(2)  malinalli 

(3)  acatl 

(4)  ocelotl 

(5)  quauhtli 

(6)  eozcaquauhtli 

(7)  ollin 

(8)  tecpatl 

(9)  quiauitl 

(10)  xochitl 

(11)  cipactli 

(12)  eecatl 

(13)  calli 

Ce  Cuetzpallin 

(1)  cuetzpallin 
;2)  coatl 

(3)  miquiztli 

(4)  mazatl 

(5)  tochtli 

(6)  atl 

(7)  itzcuintli 

(8)  ocomatli 


(9)  malinalli 

(10)  acatl 

(11)  ocelotl 

(12)  quauhtli 

(13)  eozcaquauhtli 

Ce  Ollin 

(1)  ollin 

(2)  tecpatl 

(3)  quiauitl 

(4)  xochitl 

(5)  cipactli 

(6)  eecatl 

(7)  calli 

(8)  cuetzpallin 

(9)  coatl 

(10)  miquiztli 

(11)  mazatl 

(12)  tochtli 

(13)  atl 

Ce  Itzcuintli 

(1)  itzcuintli 

(2)  ocomatli 

(3)  malinalli 

(4)  acatl 

(5)  ocelotl 

(6)  quauhtli 

(7)  eozcaquauhtli 

(8)  ollin 

(9)  tecpatl 

(10)  quiauitl 

(11)  xochitl 

(12)  cipactli 

(13)  eecatl 

Ce  Calli 

(1)  calli 

(2)  cuetzpallin 

(3)  coatl 

(4)  miquiztli 

(5)  mazatl 


(6)  tochtli 

(7)  atl 

(8)  itzcuintli 

(9)  ocomatli 

(10)  malinalli 

(11)  acatl 

(12)  ocelotl 

(13)  quauhtli 

CeCozcaquauhtli 

(1)  eozcaquauhtli 

(2)  ollin 

(3)  tecpatl 

(4)  quiauitl 

(5)  xochitl 

(6)  cipactli 

(7)  eecatl 

(8)  calli 

(9)  cuetzpallin 

(10)  coatl 

(11)  miquiztli 

(12)  mazatl 

(13)  tochtli 

Ce  Atl 

(1)  atl 

(2)  itzcuintli 

(3)  ocomatli 

(4)  malinalli 

(5)  acatl 

(6)  ocelotl 

(7)  quauhtli 

(8)  eozcaquauhtli 

(9)  ollin 

(10)  tecpatl 

(11)  quiauitl 

(12)  xochitl 

(13)  cipactli 

Ce  Eecatl 

(1)  eecatl 

(2)  calli 


(3)  cuetzpallin 

(4)  coatl 

(5)  miquiztli 

(6)  mazatl 

(7)  tochtli 

(8)  atl 

(9)  itzcuintli 

(10)  ocomatli 

(11)  malinalli 

(12)  acatl 

(13)  ocelotl 


Ce  Quauhtli 

(1)  quauhtli 

(2)  eozcaquauhtli 

(3)  ollin 

(4)  tecpatl 

(5)  quiauitl 

(6)  xochitl 

(7)  cipactli 

(8)  eecatl 

(9)  calli 

(10)  cuetzpallin 

(11)  coatl 

(12)  miquiztli 

(13)  mazatl 


Ce  Tochtli 

(1)  tochtli 

(2)  atl 

(3)  itzcuintli 

(4)  ocomatl 

(5)  malinalli 

(6)  acatl 

(7)  ocelotl 

(8)  quauhtli 

(9)  eozcaquauhtli 

(10)  ollin 

(11)  tecpatl 

(12)  quiauitl 

(13)  xochitl 


THE  DAY -GODS 

Each  of  the  day-signs  of  the  tonalamatl  was  presided  over 
by  a god  who  was  supposed  to  exercise  a special  influence  over 
it.  These  patron  gods  were  as  follotv  : 


Day-sign 

Cipactli  . 

Eecatl 

Calli 

Cuetzpallin 

Coatl 


Patron  God 
Tonacatecutli 
Quetzalcoatl 
Tepeyollotl 
Ueuecoyotl 
Chalchihuitlicue 


Day-sign 
Miquiztli  . 
Mazatl 
Tochtli 
Atl 

Itzcuintli . 


Patron  God 

Tecciztecatl 

Tlaloc 

Mayauel 

Xiuhtecutli 

Mictlantecutli 


GODS  OF  THE  “WEEKS” 


363 


Day-sign 

Patron  God 

Day-sign 

Patron  God 

Ozomatli  . 

. Xochipilli 

Cozcaquauhtli  . 

Itzpapalotl 

Malinalli  . 

. Patecatl 

Olin 

Xolotl 

Acatl 

. Tezcatlipoca  (or 

Tecpatl  . 

Tezcatlipoca  (or 

variant) 

variant) 

Ocelotl 

. Tlazolteotl 

Quiauitl  . 

Chantico 

Quauhtli  . 

. Xipe 

Xochitl  . 

Xochiquetzal 

There  are  slight  divergencies  from  the  standard  list  in  some 
of  the  codices,  but  such  are  usually  accounted  for  by  the  inter- 
polation of  variant  phases  of  the  deities  given.  Illustrations 
of  these  signs  will  be  found  in  the  several  codices. 


GODS  OF  THE  “ WEEKS  ” 


Each  of  the  20  tonalamatl  divisions,  or  “ weeks  ” of  13  days 
each,  as  they  are  sometimes  erroneously  but  usefully  designated, 
had  also  a patron  god  of  its  own  which  ruled  over  its  fortunes. 
The  initial  days  of  these  “ weeks  ” gave  the  name  to  the  entire 
“ week,”  therefore  the  designation  of  the  20  weeks  was  the  same 
as  that  of  the  20  day-signs  ; but  the  “ weeks,”  or  rather  the 
week-names,  did  not  follow  each  other  in  the  same  incidence  as 
the  days,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  foregoing  table.  The  patron 
gods  of  the  20  weeks  were,  however,  the  same  as  those  of  the 
20  days,  with  this  exception,  that  whereas  the  gods  of  the  first 
10  day-signs  were  taken  also  as  the  rulers  of  the  first  ten  weeks,1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 1 
the  god  of  the  eleventh  day,  Xochipilli,  was  allowed  to  drop  out, 
the  god  of  the  twelfth  day,  Patecatl,  taking  his  place,  the  god 
of  the  thirteenth  day  taking  the  twelfth  place,  and  so  on,  the 
deficiency  in  the  twentieth  place  being  made  up  by  adopting 
Itztli  and  Xiuhtecutli  as  joint  gods  of  the  twentieth  “ week.” 
The  list  of  gods  of  the  “ weeks  ” would  thus  be  as  follows  : 


1 Ce  cipactli  . Tonacatecutli 

2 Ce  ocelotl  . Quetzalcoatl 

3 Ce  mazatl  . Tepeyollotl 

4 Ce  xochitl  . Ueuecoyotl 

5 Ce  acatl  . Chalchihuitlicue 

6 Co  miquiztli  . Tecciztecatl 

7 Ce  quiauitl  . Tlaloc 

8 Ce  malinalli  . Mayauel 

9 Ce  coatl  . Xiuhtecutli 

10  Co  tecpatl  . Mictlantecutli 

11  Ce  ozomatli  . Patecatl 


12  Ce  quetzpallin  Itzlacoliuhqui 

13  Ce  ollin  . Tlazolteotl 

14  Ce  itzcuintli  . Xipe  Totec 

15  Ce  calli . . Itzpapalotl 

16  Ce  cozca- 

quauhtli  . Xolotl 

17  Ce  atl  . . Chalchiuhtotolin 

18  Ce  eecatl  . Chantico 

19  Ce  quauhtli  . Xochiquetzal 

20  Ce  tochtli  . Xiuhtecutli  and 

Itztli 


1 It  will  bo  seen  that,  although  the  first  ten  day-gods  take  the  first  ten 
week-signs,  these  signs  are,  naturally,  not  in  the  same  order  as  the  day-signs, 
as  has  been  pointed  out,  therefore  these  gods  could  not  take  precisely  the  same 
sign  as  in  the  day-  signs,  but  only  the  same  place. 


364  THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 


“ LORDS  OF  THE  NIGHT  ” 

Besides  the  patron  gods  of  the  days  and  the  weeks  there  were 
nine  “ Lords  of  the  Night,”  which,  I am  inclined  to  think  with 
Seler,  were  not  “ lords  ” or  governors  of  nine  consecutive  nights, 
but  of  nine  hours  of  each  night.  Perhaps  the  best  example  of 
these  is  in  the  tonalamatl  of  the  Aubin  collection,  where  they 
are  displayed  in  continuous  and  unbroken  squares  in  the  same 
small,  square  compartments  as  the  day-signs  and  ciphers,  and 
occupy  the  third  and  second  last  vertical  row  of  the  upper  and 
the  third  cross-row  of  the  lower  half.  In  Codex  Telleriano- 
Remensis  and  Codex  Vaticanus  A they  form  a special  series 
above  or  else  facing  the  day-signs.  We  also  find  them  displayed 
on  sheet  14  of  Codex  Borgia,  on  sheets  19-23  of  Codex  Vaticanus  B, 
and  on  sheets  2—1  of  Codex  Fejervary- Mayer.  We  know  the  names 
of  these  gods  from  the  first  interpreter  of  Codex  Vaticanus  A, 
who  gives  them  as  follows,  with  their  influences  : 


1 Xiuhtecutli  . Good 

2 Itztli . . . Bad 

3 Piltzintecutli  . Good 

4 Centeotl  . . Indifferent 

5 Mictlantecutli  . Bad 


6 Chalchihuitlicue  . Indifferent 

7 Tlazolteotl  . . Bad 

8 Tepeyollotl  . Good 

9 Tlaloc  . . Indifferent 


Gama  describes  these  nine  gods  as  Acompahados  (Companions) 
and  as  Sehores  de  la  Noche  (Lords  of  the  Night),  and  from  his 
obscure  rendering  of  Cristoval  de  Castillo,  as  well  as  from  the 
Manuel  de  Ministros  de  Indios  of  Jacinto  de  la  Serna,  we  gather 
that  they  held  sway  over  the  night  from  sunset  to  sunrise.  The 
Mexicans  divided  the  night  into  nine  hours,  and  it  is  obvious  from 
the  astrological  point  of  view  that  the  Mexican  soothsayers  who 
used  the  tonalamatl  must  have  found  it  necessary  to  estimate 
not  only  the  “ fate  ” of  the  several  days,  but  also  that  of  the  several 
hours  and  times  of  the  day  and  night.1 

* For  Seler’s  point  of  view  on  this  question  see  his  Commentary  on  the 
Aubin  Tonalamatl,  London  and  Berlin,  1900-1,  pp.  197-228. 

De  Jonghe,  Le  Calendrier  Mexicain  (Journal  of  the  Americanist  Society 
of  Paris,  Now  Series,  vol.  iii,  1906,  pp.  197-228),  believes  that  the  “ Lords  of 
the  Night  ” are  connected  with  the  days  of  the  tonalamatl.  He  states  that  the 
combination  of  these  “ Lords  of  the  Night  ” with  the  day-names  sufficed  to 
distinguish  the  days  of  the  year  which  by  the  tonalamatl  reckoning  would  take 
the  same  numeral  and  sign.  Thus  if  the  year  began  with  1 acatl,  the  261st  day 
would  also  be  1 acatl,  but  would  have  a different  “ Lord  of  the  Night.”  This 
is  denied  by  Seler. 


Lords  of  the  Night. 

(As  in  the  list  given  on  p.  364.) 


oL 

1 

1 

4L 

I 

zTVT 
/]  1 0 

v-'l 

% 

1 

Symbols  of  the  Lords  of  the  Night. 

THE  LORDS  OF  THE  NIGHT-HOURS. 
(From  the  Codex  Bologna,  sheets  1-8.) 


HOURS  OF  THE  DAY  AND  NIGHT 


365 


THE  LORDS  OF  THE  DAY-HOURS 

This  of  course  applies  with  equal  force  to  the  thirteen  so-called 
“ Lords  of  the  Day,”  who  almost  certainly  acted  as  gods  of  the 
thirteen  hours  of  the  day.  They  were  1 : 


1 

Xiuhtecutli 

8 

Tlaloc 

2 

Tlaltecutli 

9 

Quetzalcoatl 

3 

Chalchihuitlicue 

10 

Tezcatlipoca 

4 

Tonatiuh 

11 

Mictlantecutli 

5 

Tlazolteotl 

12 

Tlauizcalpantecutli 

6 

Teoyaomiqui 

13 

Ilamatecutli 

7 

Xochipilli 

Seler,  in  his  Commentary  on  the  Aubin  Tonalamatl,  gives  the 
following  table  of  the  gods  of  the  night  and  day  hours  : 


(Noon) 

7.  Xochipilli-Cinteotl 
6.  Teoyaomiqui  8.  Tlaloc 
5.  Tlacolteotl  9.  Quetzalcoatl 

4.  Tonatiuh  10.  Tezcatlipoca 

3.  Chalchiuhtlicue  (Day)  11.  Mictlantecutli 

2.  Tlaltecutli  12.  Tlauizcalpantecutli 

1.  Xiuhtecutli  13.  Ilamatecutli 


IX.  Tlaloc  I.  Xiuhtecutli 

VIII.  Tepeyollotl  (Night)  II.  Itztli 

VII.  Tlacolteotl  III.  Piltzintecutli-Tonatiuh 

VI.  Chalchihuitlicue  IV.  Cinteotl 
V.  Mictlantecutli 
(Midnight) 

This  casts  light  on  the  method  of  augury  of  the  priests.  Thus 
the  hour  of  noon  was  auspicious  because  it  was  connected  with 
the  mystic  number  7,  and  9 was  a number  of  good  augury  with 
sorcerers  because  it  gave  the  number  of  the  underworlds  and 
of  the  night-hours.2 

1 These  are  depicted  in  the  Aubin  tonalamatl  along  with  their  thirteen 
bird-disguises  in  the  second  and  first  vertical  rows  of  the  upper  and  the 
second,  and  first  cross-rows  of  the  lower  half  of  the  sheets,  and  are  displayed 
in  a similar  manner  in  Codex  Borbonicus.  There  are  discrepancies  between 
the  two  MSS.,  but  these  are  by  no  means  irreconcilable.  Thus  in  the  seventh 
place  Codex  Borbonicus  has  the  Maize-god  Cinteotl  and  the  Aubin  tonalamatl 
Macuilxochitl  or  Xochipilli,  who,  however,  in  one  of  the  songs  to  the  gods, 
is  addressed  as  “ Cinteotl,”  and  so  forth. 

3 This,  however,  clashes  with  Seler’s  enumeration  of  the  day  and  night 
hours  elsewhere. 


366  THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 

TONALAMATL  FESTIVALS 

Although  the  tonalamatl  has  been  called  the  “ ritual  calendar,” 
most  of  the  feast-days  theoretically  vested  in  the  “ months  ” 
of  the  solar  calendar  and  were  called  after  them  ; but  certain 
of  the  festivals  appear  to  have  been  connected  with  the  tonalamatl, 
to  have  vested  in  it,  so  to  speak.  We  know  these  by  their  names, 
as  they  are  called  after  the  several  tonalamatl  dates  on  which  they 
fall.  Thus  a festival  taking  the  name  of  a day-sign  theoretically 
belongs  to  the  tonalamatl,  and  one  called  after  a month-name 
to  the  solar  calendar  proper.  Moreover,  the  former  were  known 
as  “ movable,”  the  latter  as  “ fixed,”  feasts.  Occasionally 
these  clashed,  as  Sahagun  states,  with  the  result  that  the  tonalamatl 
feasts  usurped  the  place  of  the  calendar  celebrations.1 

RECAP  ITULA  TION 

Recapitulating,  we  find  : 

1.  That  the  tonalamatl  was  a “ Book  of  Fate,”  and  not  in  itself 
a calendar  or  time-count. 

2.  That  it  was  composed  of  20  day-signs,  repeated  13  times, 
or  260  day-signs  in  all. 

3.  That  these  were  usually  divided  into  20  groups  of  13  days 
each,  erroneously  but  usefully  called  “weeks.”  The  initial 
days  of  these  “ weeks  ” gave  the  name  to  the  entire  “ week.” 

4.  To  effect  this  division  the  numbers  1 to  13  were  added  to 
the  20  day-signs  in  continuous  series. 

5.  That  by  this  arrangement  each  day-sign  had  a number  that 
did  not  recur  in  connexion  with  that  sign  for  a space  of  260 
days. 

6.  That  the  name  of  a day-sign  in  the  tonalamatl  was  not  com- 
plete without  its  accompanying  number. 

7.  Each  of  the  day-signs  of  the  tonalamatl  was  presided  over 
by  a god  who  was  supposed  to  exercise  a special  influence  over 
it.  (See  list.) 

Each  of  the  20  tonalamatl  divisions  or  “ weeks  ” had  also  a 
patron  god  of  its  own.  (See  list.) 

8.  Besides  the  patron  gods  of  the  days  and  “ weeks  ” there 
were  : 

(a)  Nine  “ lords  ” or  patron  gods  of  the  night-hours. 

(b)  Thirteen  “ lords  ” of  the  day-hours. 


1 Sahagun,  bk.  ii,  c.  xix. 


THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 


367 


THE  TONAL  AM  ATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 

It  will  be  asked  : “ In  what  manner  did  the  soothsayers  recon- 
cile the  days  of  the  ionalamatl  with  those  of  the  calendar  ? ” 
By  what  method  did  they  find  such  and  such  a day  in  the  tonala- 
matl  in  the  lonalpohualli,  or  solar  calendar  ? How  was  the  one 
adjusted  to  the  other  ? In  order  to  reply  clearly  to  this  question, 
it  will  first  be  necessary  to  describe  briefly  the  nature  of  the  Mexi- 
can solar  calendar  or  time-count  proper.  The  Mexican  solar 
year  consisted  of  365  days,  divided  into  18  periods  of  20  days 
each,  called  cempohualli,  or  “months,”  and  one  period  of  5 days, 
known  as  nemontemi,  or  “ useless  ” or  “ unlucky  ” days. 


The  Cempohualli. 
“ months,”  were  1 : 

— The  names  of  the 

18  cempohualli,  or 

Month 

Seasonal  Character 

Presiding  God 

Atlacahualco 

Ceasing  of  rain 

Tlaloque 

Tlacaxipeuliztli  . 

Seed  time 

Xipe 

Tozoztontli 

Rain  desired 

Tlaloque 

Ueitozoztli  . 

Worship  of  new  maize 

Chicomecoatl 

Toxcatl 

Commencement  of  rainy 

Uitzilopochtli  and 

season 

Tezcatlipoca 

Etzalqualiztli 

Rain  desired 

Tlaloc 

Tecuilhuitontli 

Rain  desired 

Uixtociuatl 

Ueitecuilhuitl 

Adoration  of  the  ripening 

maize 

Xilonen 

Tlaxochimaco 

First-flowering 

Uitzilopochtli 

Xocohuetzi 

Heat  for  ripening 

Xiuhtecutli 

Ochpaniztli  . . 

Refreshment  of  the  Earth 

mother 

Tlazolteotl 

Teotleco 

Return  of  the  gods  from 

rest 

Tezcatlipoca 

Tepeilhuitl  . 

. Rain 

Tlaloc 

Quecholli 

Rain 

Mixcoatl 

Panquetzaliztli 

Winter  solstice 

Uitzilopochtli 

Atemoztli 

Rain 

Tlaloque 

Tititl 

The  season  of  sereness 

Ilamatecutli 

Izcalli 

Toasting  of  the  com 

supply 

Xiuhtecutli 

Eight  out  of  eighteen  of  these  festivals  are  thus  connected 
with  the  appeal  for  rain,  or  the  celebration  of  its  appearance. 
The  remainder  celebrate  the  growth  of  the  maize  in  its  various 
stages,  rejoice  at  the  appearance  of  these  blossoms  which  were 

1 These  month -names  bear  a striking  resemblance  to  those  of  certain 
North  American  Indian  tribes,  and  are  certainly  seasonal  in  their  origin. 


368  THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 


so  dear  to  the  Mexican  heart,  are  held  in  honour  of  the  Earth- 
mother,  or  mark  the  solstices. 

To  the  combination  of  the  tonalamatl  and  the  solar  calendar 
the  tonalamatl  contributed  the  names  of  the  days,  and  the  solar 
calendar  the  divisions  of  the  year  in  which  the  days  found  posi- 
tions. The  tonalamatl  and  the  solar  year  thus  went  side  by  side, 
each  recommencing  whenever  it  reached  its  own  limits.  The 
days  in  the  solar  year  were  known  by  the  names  of  the  days 
in  the  tonalamatl  which  were  affixed  to  them.  Thus  it  is  plain 
that  105  of  the  260  tonalamatl  day-names  had  to  be  repeated  in 
the  solar  year  of  365  days. 

NAMES  OF  THE  YEARS 

The  year  was  known  by  the  tonalamatl  sign  of  the  day  with  which 
it  began.  As  there  were  20  day-signs,  and  5,  the  least  common 
multiple  of  365  and  20,  goes  into  20  exactly  4 times,  the  year 
could  begin  with  one  of  the  four  signs  only.  These  were  Acatl, 
Tecpatl,  Calli,  Toclitli. 

Each  month  of  a given  year  began  with  the  same  tonalamatl 
day-sign.  The  20  day-signs  always  occupied  the  same  position 
in  all  the  months  of  a given  year,  as  there  were  20  days  in  a Mexican 
month.  But  since  the  last  month  was  followed  by  the  5 nemontemi, 
or  “ unlucky  ” days,  it  follows  that  each  year  began  with  a day- 
sign  five  days  later  than  the  last.  Also,  since  365,  the  number 
of  days  in  a year,  is  divisible  by  13  with  1 as  remainder,  it  follows 
that  each  year  began  with  a day -number  one  in  advance  of  the 
last. 

The  commencement  of  the  year  coincided  with  the  commence- 
ment of  the  tonalamatl  once  in  four  years. 

THE  CALENDAR  ROUND 

Fifty-two  years  made  up  what  has  been  called  by  modern 
students  the  Calendar  Round,  and  by  the  Mexicans  was  known 
as  xiuhmolpilli  or  toxiulimolpio,  “ year  bundle  ” or  “ our  years 
will  be  bound.”  The  Mexicans,  differing  in  this  from  the  Maya, 
never  progressed  beyond  the  Calendar  Round  in  the  development 
of  their  chronological  system,  as  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  dates 
of  precisely  the  same  designation  occurred  at  intervals  of  every 
52  years. 

The  four  signs  which  alone  might  commence  the  year — acatl 
(reed),  tecpatl  (flint),  calli  (house),  tochtli  (rabbit),  took  the 


UNLUCKY  DAYS 


869 


numbers  1 to  13  continuously.  The  numbering  of  the  years  thus 
provided  that  every  one  of  the  52  years  of  the  xiuhmolpilli 
(or  Calendar  Round)  was  distinguished  from  every  other.  The 
whole  cycle  of  52  years  was  thus  divided  into  four  quarters  of 
13  years  each.  These  year-names  were  each  referred  to  a parti- 
cular quarter  of  the  heavens,  the  acatl  years  to  the  east,  tecpatl 
to  the  north,  calli  to  the  west,  and  tochtli  to  the  south.  The 
computation  began  in  the  east  with  the  acatl  years,  strangely 
enough  with  2 acatl,  the  cycle  thus  closing  with  1 toclitli.  The 
Aztecs  believed  that  the  current  epoch  had  begun  with  the  year 
1 tochtli,  for  it  was  in  this  period  that  the  world  had  undergone 
reconstruction.  Not  until  this  was  completed  could  the  first 
cycle  of  52  years  be  begun.  Therefore  2 acatl  is  the  opening 
year  of  the  first  and  of  all  following  cycles,  and  is  usually  repre- 
sented by  the  picture  of  a fire-drill.  The  years  had  also  colours 
and  patron  gods  of  their  own  as  follows  : acatl — yellow  (gods 
Tonatiuh  and  Itztli) ; tecpatl — red  (god  Mictlantecutli)  ; calli — 
blue  (earth-goddesses)  ; tochtli — white  (Tlaloc). 

Arranged  in  tabular  form,  this  would  appear  as  follows  : 


Year-name 

Direction 

Colour 

Patron  God 

Acatl 

. East 

Yellow 

Tonatiuh  and  Itztli 

Tecpatl 

. North 

Red 

Mictlantecutli 

Calli  . 

. West 

Blue 

Earth-goddesses 

Tochtli  . 

. South 

White 

Tlaloc 

THE  NEMONTEMI 

The  five  nemontemi,  or  “ useless  ” days,  were  evidently  a later 
interpolation,  introduced  at  a period  when  it  was  discovered 
that  an  original  time-count  of  360  days  did  not  fulfil  the  solar 
round.  They  were  counted  and  distinguished,  however,  in 
precisely  the  same  manner  as  the  other  days,  that  is  the 
numerals  and  hieroglyphs  of  the  tonalamatl  were  adjusted  to 
them  as  well  as  to  the  rest,  except  that  they  had  no  “ lords  ” 
or  rulers  of  day  or  night.  They  were  regarded  as  most  unlucky 
and  no  business  of  any  kind  was  transacted  upon  them,  only 
the  most  necessary  offices  of  life  being  undertaken  whilst  they 
lasted.  They  are  in  no  sense  to  be  regarded  as  intercalary  days, 
for,  despite  classical  statements  to  the  contrary,  the  Mexicans 
were  ignorant  of  the  methods  of  chronological  intercalation,  and 
a study  of  the  tonalamatl  will  show  that  the  introduction  of  any 
intercalary  period  would  render  it  nugatory  and  destroy  that 
24 


370  THE  TONALAMATL  AND  THE  SOLAR  CALENDAR 


ability  to  return  into  itself  which  is  one  of  its  chief  characteristics. 
These  nemontemi  did  not  always  fall  in  the  same  period  of  the 
solar  year,  but  were  sometimes  placed  before  Quaitleloa,  now 
before  Tititl,  now  before  Atemoztli,  or  elsewhere,  as  the  priestly 
authorities  decided.  For  the  Mexican  year  of  365  days  was  short 
of  the  true  solar  year  by  six  hours  and  some  minutes,  therefore 
in  the  course  of  years  the  festivals  became  displaced  and  their 
chronological  revision  and  balance  became  necessary  and  could 
be  effected  by  the  shifting  of  the  nemontemi. 

THE  VENUS  PERIOD 

To  Forstemann  and  Seler  is  due  the  discovery  that  the  Mexicans 
possessed  a system  of  computing  time  based  upon  the  synodic 
revolution  of  the  planet  Venus.  The  Venus  period  or  “ year  ” 
comprised  584  days.  It  would  seem  as  if  the  Maya  and  Mexicans 
had  striven  to  discover  a common  measure  for  the  numbers 
584,  365,  and  260.  Five  synodical  revolutions  of  Venus  are 
equivalent  to  eight  solar  years  (5  X 584)  = 2,920  = (8  X365), 
but  the  number  2,920  is  not  divisible  by  260,  the  number  of  days 
in  the  tonalamatl.  Any  accord  between  the  two  periods  is  not 
possible  until  the  sum  of  104  years  is  reached,  that  is  to  say, 
65  Venus  periods  are  equal  to  146  tonalamatl  periods  both  of 
which  contain  37,960  days. 

Like  the  tonalamatl,  the  Venus  period  was  productive  of  sacer- 
dotal speculation,  commencing  with  the  day  cipactli.  At  the 
end  of  six  periods  the  Venus  “ year  ” recommenced  with  the 
same  sign  affected  by  a different  figure.  At  the  end  of  thirteen 
periods  the  sign  differed,  but  the  figure  was  the  same.  The 
question  has  been  learnedly  discussed  in  its  entirety  by  Seler, 
to  whose  work  the  reader  is  referred.1 

1 The  Venus  Period  in  the  Borgian  Codex  Groups,  English  translation  in 
Bull.  28  of  the  U.S.  Bureau  of  Ethnology. 


SHORT  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  WORKS 
RELATING  TO  THE  TONALAMATL 


Bulletin  28  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology  has  several 
papers  by  Seler  and  Forstemann  on  the  tonalamatl. 
Morley,  “ An  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  Maya  Hieroglyphs  ” 
( Bulletin  57  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology). 
(Washington,  1915.) 

Bowditch,  Maya  Numeration,  Calendar  and  Astronomy.  (Cam- 
bridge, Mass.,  1910.) 

Payne,  History  of  the  New  World,  vol.  ii,  pp.  310-332. 

The  beginner  is  strongly  advised  to  peruse  these  works  before 
approaching  the  subject  in  the  pages  of  the  older  Spanish  writers, 
most  of  whom  possessed  very  hazy  notions  regarding  it.  By  far 
the  best  textbook  is  that  of  Morley,  who,  although  dealing  with 
the  Maya  calendar  at  much  greater  length,  writes  with  great 
clarity  upon  the  Mexican  system,  which  is  indeed  identical  with 
the  Maya  tonalamatl  in  its  simpler  manifestations.  Bowditch’s 
book  is  more  for  advanced  students  of  the  Maya  hieroglyphical 
system,  the  senior  wranglers  of  the  subject,  so  to  speak.  But 
in  places  he  dwells  upon  the  Mexican  tonalamatl  in  an  illuminating 
and  suggestive  manner.  The  papers  of  Seler  and  other  German 
writers  on  the  tonalamatl,  although  most  valuable,  by  no  means 
possess  the  admirable  clarity  and  simplicity  of  Morley’s  invaluable 
essay.  A good  short  article  on  the  calendar  is  that  of  Dr.  Preuss 
in  Dr.  Hastings’  Encyclopaedia  of  Religion  and  Ethics,  vol.  iii,  pp. 
124  ff. 

A useful  essay  on  the  tonalamatl  is  that  of  de  Jonghe,  “ Der 
alt-mexikanische  Kalendar,”  in  Zeitschrift  fur  Ethnologie,  1906  ; 
and  in  the  Journal  des  Americanistes  de  Paris,  New  Series,  vol. 
iii  (Paris,  1906),  pp.  197-228. 


171 


A BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 


THE  works  contained  in  this  bibliography  are  included 
because  they  refer  to  the  religion  of  ancient  Mexico. 
It  must  be  distinctly  understood  that  it  does  not  aim 
at  providing  a comprehensive  list  of  wrorks  on  Mexican  history 
or  archaeology  or  on  the  religion  of  the  Maya.  It  is  believed  that 
no  work  of  importance,  old  or  new,  which  deals  with  Mexican 
religion  has  been  omitted.  The  books  contained  in  the  first 
part  are  arranged  in  accordance  with  an  estimate  of  their  degree 
of  importance  to  the  student.  Those  in  the  second  part  are 
alphabetically  arranged.  The  bibliography  at  the  end  of  the 
appendix  on  the  Tonalamatl  should  also  be  consulted. 


PART  I 

(Works  written  by  the  earlier  Spanish  authors) 

Bernardino  de  Sahagun,  Historia  Universal  de  Nueva-Espaha. 
(Mexico,  1829  ; London,  1830 — in  vol.  vi  of  Lord  Kings- 
borough’s  Antiquities  of  Mexico.)  French  translation  by 
Jourdanet  and  Simeon  (Paris,  1880). 

J.  Torquemada,  Monarquia  Indiana.  (Madrid,  1723.) 

Torribio  de  Benavente  (Motolinia),  Historia  de  los  Indios  de 
Nueva-Espaha.  In  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities  of  Mexico, 
vol.  ix,  pp.  469  ff.  ; see  also  L.  G.  Pimentel,  Memoriales  de 
Fray  Torribio  de  Motolinia  (Paris,  1903),  which  contains 
materials  not  in  the  Historia.  See  also  Icazbalceta. 

Fernando  de  Alva  Ixtlilxochitl,  Relaciones,  in  vol.  ix  of 
Kingsborough’s  Antiquities  of  Mexico  (London,  1830-1848). 
Edited  by  Alfredo  Chavero  (Mexico,  1891);  Historia  Chichi - 
meca , in  vol.  ix  of  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities  of  Mexico. 
Edited  by  Chavero  (Mexico,  1892). 

372 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION  373 


Diego  Munoz  Camargo,  Historia  de  Tlascala.  Edited  by  A. 
Chavero.  (Mexico,  1892.) 

Francesco  Saverio  Clavigero,  Storia  Antico  del  Mexico. 
(Cesena,  1780.)  English  translation  by  Charles  Cullen,  2 vols. 
(London,  1787.) 

Lorenzo  Boturini  Benaduci,  Idea  de  una  Nueva  Historia 
General  de  la  America  Septentrional.  (Madrid,  1746.) 

Antonio  de  Herrera,  Historia  General  de  los  Indios  Occidentals 
(1601-1615,  5 vols.  folio;  Madrid,  1728-1730).  English 
translation  by  Stevens  (London,  1725-1726 — considerably 
abridged). 

Jose  de  Acosta,  Historia  Natural  y Moral  de  Las  Yndias.  (Seville, 
1580.)  English  translation  in  Purchas  his  Pilgrimes. 

Francisco  Lopez  de  Gomara,  Cronica  de  la  fy ueva-Espaha. 
(Medina,  1553;  Antwerp,  1554;  Mexico,  1836.)  English 
translation,  The  Pleasant  History  of  the  Conquest  of  the  West 
Indies.  (London,  1578.) 

Antonio  Leon  y Gama,  Description  de  las  Dos  Piedros.  (Mexico, 
1792.) 

Gonzalo  Hernandez  de  Oviedo  y Valdes,  Historia  General 
y Natural  de  las  Indias  Occidentals : (1535,  vol.  i only.) 

(Madrid,  1851-1855,  4 vols.) 

Jacinto  de  la  Serna,  Manuel  de  Ministros  de  Indios  para  el 
Conocimiento  de  sus  Idolatrias,  y Extirpacion  de  Ellas. 

(Madrid,  1892.) 

Augustin  Vetancurt,  1'eatro  Mexicana.  (Mexico,  1697  ; 1870- 
1871.) 

M.  F.  de  E.,  Veytia,  Historia  Antigua  de  Mejico.  (Mexico 
1836.)  (Partly  in  Kingsborough,  vol.  viii.) 

There  may  also  be  consulted  : 

B.  de  Las  Casas,  Historia  de  las  Indias. 

The  best  edition  is  that  of  Madrid  (5  vols.,  1875-1876). 

Bernal  Diaz  del  Castillo,  Historia  V erdadera  de  la  Conquista 
de  Nueva-Espaha.  Translated  by  A.  P.  Maudslay  as  The 
True  History  of  the  Conquest  of  Mexico.  (Hakluyt  Society, 
London,  1908.) 

It  gives  but  little  information  regarding  Mexican  religion. 

Hernan  Cortez,  Cartas  de  Relacion.  English  translation  by 
F.  A.  MacNutt  under  the  title  of  The  Five  Letters  of  Cortez 
to  the  Emperor  Charles  V.  (New  York,  1908.) 


374  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 


A.  Tezozomoc,  Cronica  Mexicana,  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities 
of  Mexico,  vol.  vii,  contains  much  valuable  mythical  material ; 
also  edited  by  Orozco  y Berra.  (Mexico,  1878.) 

Duran,  Historia  de  las  Indias  (ed.  Ramirez,  2 vols.,  Mexico, 
1867-1880). 

It  is  full,  valuable,  and  sometimes  indispensable. 

Historia  de  los  Mexicanos  por  sus  Pinturas,  in  Annals  of  the 
Mexican  Museum,  vol.  ii.  Translated  by  T.  Phillips,  Proc. 
Am.  Phil.  Soc.,  vol.  xxi. 

Anales  de  San  Anion,  Munon  Chimalpahin.  (Paris,  1889,  trans- 
lated by  R.  Simeon.) 

Of  considerable  use  as  regards  myth. 

Anales  de  Quauhtitlan  (or  Codex  Chimalpopoca)  in  Anales  del 
Museo  Nacional  de  Mexico,  end  of  tom.  iii. 

Tiievet,  “ Histoire  de  Mechyque  ” (in  Journ.  Soc.  Amer.  de  Paris, 
1905,  pp.  1-41). 

G.  de  Mendieta,  Historia  Ecclesiastica  Indiana.  (Icazbalceta, 
Mexico,  1870.) 

G.  Icazbalceta,  Nueva  Coleccion  de  documentos  para  la  historia 
de  Mexico  ( Mexico , series  i,  vol.  i,  1858  ; vol.  ii,  1866;  series 
ii.  Mexico,  1886-1892). 

The  first  volume  of  series  i contains  Motolinia’s  Hist,  de  los 
Indios,  and  the  third  volume  of  the  second  series  the  work  of 
Pomar  y Zurita. 

Ternaux-Compans,  Voyages,  Relations  et  Memoires  originaux 
pour  servir  a Vhistoire  de  la  dccouverte  de  V Amerique.  (Paris, 
1837-1841,  20  vols.) 

This  contains  Mendieta,  Tezozomoc,  Ixtlilxochitl,  Camargo,  etc. 
Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  los  Viages  y descuhrimientos.  (Madrid, 
1825-1837,  5 vols.) 

Many  texts  and  rare  works  are  also  to  be  found  in  Lord  Kings- 
borough’s Antiquities  of  Mexico  (London,  1830-1848),  especially 
Dupaix,  Monuments  of  New  Spain  (in  vols.  iv  and  vi) ; translation 
of  the  text  of  the  interpretative  codices  (see  Appendix  of  this 
work),  Sahagun  (in  vol.  viii),  Veytia,  Historia  del  origen  de  las 
Gentes  que  Poblaron  La  America  Septentrional  (in  vol.  viii).  Tezo- 
zomoc, Cronica  Mexicana  (in  vol.  ix),  Ixtlilxochitl,  Hist.  Chichi- 
meca  (in  vol.  ix),  Pimentel,  Ritos,  Antiguos,  Sacrifices,  etc. 
(in  vol.  x). 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION  375 


PART  II 

(Works  written  from  1800-1920) 

Alexander,  Hartley  Burr,  Latin- American  Mythology.  (Bos- 
ton, 1920.) 

Anales  del  Museo  Nacional  de  Mexico.  Tom.  i,  Mexico,  1877. 
(In  progress.) 

Bancroft,  Hubert  Howe,  The  Native  Races  of  the  Pacific  States , 
5 vols.  (New  York  and  London,  1875-1876.) 

This  great  compilation  is  admirable  as  a painstaking  precis 
of  the  extensive  sources  relating  to  Mexican  and  Mayan  history 
and  religion,  but  its  author  and  his  assistants  confined  themselves 
to  collection  and  compilation  alone,  and  ventured  upon  no  critical 
treatment  of  the  subject,  for  which  task,  they  admit,  they  were 
not  equipped. 

Batres,  L.,  Archceological  Explorations  in  Escalerillas  Street, 
City  of  Mexico,  Year  1900.  (Mexico,  1902.) 

Beuchat,  H.,  Manuel  d’ Arche ologie  Americaine  ( Amerique  Pre- 
historique — Civilisations  disparues).  (Paris,  1912.) 

A useful  if  somewhat  condensed  review  of  American  archaeo- 
logy. Chapitre  iv,  livre  ii,  gives  a short  and  not  very  thorough 
account  of  the  gods,  rites,  priesthood,  and  magic  of  the  ancient 
Mexicans.  Chapitre  v deals  with  the  Calendar,  and  chapitre 
vi  is  useful  for  reference  regarding  the  manuscripts  and  writing. 
There  is  a good  bibliography. 

Brasseur  de  Bourbourg,  E.  C.,  Histoire  des  nations  civilisees 
du  Mexique  et  de  V Amerique  Centrale  durant  les  siecles  ante- 
rieurs  a Cristophe  Colomb.  4 vols.  (Paris,  1857-1859.) 

The  Abbe  Brasseur’s  idea  was  to  explain  American  mythology  as 
the  apotheosis  of  history.  But  he  unearthed  many  priceless 
materials,  some  of  which  are  included  in  this  work. 

Brinton,  Daniel  Garrison,  American  Hero  Myths  (Philadelphia, 
1882) ; “ Were  the  Toltecs  an  Historic  Nationality  ? ” ( Proc . 
Am.  Phil.  Soc.,  xxiv,  pp.  229-241,  1887)  ; Essays  of  an 
Americanist  (Philadelphia,  1890) ; The  Myths  of  the  New 
World  (3rd  edition,  revised)  (Philadelphia,  1905). 

I‘  'inton’s  books  are  all  well  written,  but  his  ideas  regarding 
mythology  generally  are  now  a little  out-of-date.  His  works, 


876  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 


however,  will  repay  perusal.  The  student  must  be  on  his  guard 
against  Brinton’s  etymologies,  as  his  knowledge  of  the  native 
languages,  though  extensive,  was  not  exact. 

Charency,  H.  de,  Le  Mythe  de  Votan,  etude  sur  les  origines  Asia- 
tiques  de  la  Civilisation  Americaine.  (Alengon,  1871.) 
Charnay,  Desire,  Les  anciennes  Villes  du  nouveau  monde.  (Paris, 
1885.)  English  translation  as  Ancient  Cities  of  the  New  World. 
(London,  1887.) 

Charnay’s  acquaintance  with  Mexican  archaeology  and  mytho- 
logy was  elementary. 

Cuavero,  Alfredo,  Mexico  a traves  de  los  siglos,  tom.  i ; His- 
toria  antigua  y de  la  Conquista.  (Barcelona,  1884.) 

This  enthusiastic  and  painstaking  antiquary  did  much  for  the 
elucidation  of  all  subjects  relating  to  ancient  Mexico,  especially 
as  regards  the  discovery  and  criticism  of  ancient  works  and  manu- 
scripts. But  his  zeal  frequently  betrayed  him  into  somewhat 
fanciful  explanations. 

Chevalier,  M.,  Le  Mexique  Ancien  et  Moderne.  (Paris,  1886.) 
Congres  international  des  Americanistes — comptes  rendus.  (Bien- 
nially, 1878  ff.) 

Dieseldorff,  E.  P.,  “ Cuculcan  ” (Zeit.  fur.  Ethnol.,  xxvii, 
verhand.,  pp.  780-873). 

Gamio,  Manuel,  “ Investigaciones  Arqueologicas  en  Mexico, 
1914-1915  ” ( Proc . Nineteenth  I nt.  Cong.  ofAmer.,  Washington, 
1915).  (Washington,  D.C.,  1917.) 

Haebler,  K.,  Die  Religion  der  Mittleren  Amerika.  (Munster, 
1899.) 

Hamy,  Galerie  Americaine  du  Musie  d’ ethnographic  au  Trocadero. 
(Paris,  1897.) 

Humboldt,  Alexander  von,  Vues  des  Cordilleres.  (Paris,  1816.) 

English  translation  by  Helen  Williams,  1815. 

Joyce,  Thomas  Athol,  Mexican  Archceology : an  Introduction  to 
the  Archceology  of  the  Mexican  and  Mayan  Civilizations  of 
pre-Spanish  America.  (London,  1914.) 

Chapters  ii,  iii,  and  iv  give  a useful  summary  of  Mexican 
Mythology,  the  Calendar  and  Calendrical  Feasts,  and  Writing, 
Priesthood,  Medicine,  and  Burial. 

Journal  de  la  Societe  des  Americanistes  de  Paris  (passim),  tom.  i. 
(Paris,  1896.)  (In  progress.) 

Muller,  J.  G.,  Geschichte  der  Amerikanischen  Urreligion.  (Ber- 
lin, 1867.) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION  377 


An  industrious  compilation,  which  must  be  used  with  caution. 
Its  quotations  are  nearly  all  at  second-hand  and  its  hypotheses 
are  not  a little  strained. 

Nadaillac,  Marquis  de,  Prehistoric  America  (trans.).  (London, 
1885.) 

Very  much  in  the  nature  of  a popular  presentation  of  the 
subject. 

Nuttall,  Zelia,  The  Fundamental  Principles  of  Old  and  New 
World  Civilizations.  (Papers,  Peabody  Mus.,  ii,  1901.) 
Orozco  y Berra,  Historia  antigua  y de  la  Conquista  de  Mexico. 
4 vols.  (Mexico,  1880.) 

Payne,  Edward  James,  History  of  the  New  World  called  America. 
(London,  1892-1899.) 

This  exhaustive  work,  which  deals  with  the  evolution  of  culture 
on  the  American  continent,  is  admirably  conceived,  and  is 
obviously  the  result  of  much  thought  and  research.  As  regards 
mythology,  however,  the  author,  although  well  versed  in  the 
early  writings  relating  to  Mexico,  seems  to  have  been  unacquainted 
with  those  of  modern  specialists  on  the  subject,  and  this,  of  course, 
limits  his  outlook.  Nor  does  he  display  any  acquaintance  with 
the  Mexican  native  codices. 

Pen  afiel,  A.,  Monumentos  del  arte  Mexicano  antiguo,  3 vols.  (Ber- 
lin, 1890.)  Destruccion  del  templo  mayor  de  Mexico  y los 
monumentos  encontrados  en  la  ciudad  en  la  excavaciones  de 
1897  y 1902.  (Mexico,  1910.) 

Prescott,  W.  H.,  History  of  the  Conquest  of  Mexico.  (New  York, 
1843.) 

The  few  pages  in  which  Prescott  describes  the  religion  of  ancient 
Mexico  are  now  quite  useless  for  the  purposes  of  the  serious  student. 
Reville,  A.,  Les  Religions  du  Mexique,  de  V Amerique  Centrale  ei 
du  Perou.  (Paris,  1885.)  English  translation  as  Origin  and 
Growth  of  Religion  as  Illustrated  by  the  Native  Religions  of 
Mexico  and  Peru  (Hibbert  Lectures),  1884. 

A sketchy  and  inaccurate  account,  showing  only  a second-hand 
acquaintance  with  the  subject. 

Robelo,  C.  A.,  Diccionario  de  mitologia  Nahoa  in  Annals  of 
the  Mexican  Museum,  vols.  ii-v,  Second  Series.  (Mexico, 
1905.) 

Saville,  M.  H.,  “The  Plumed  Serpent  in  Northern  Mexico.” 

( The  Archaeologist,  vol.  ii,  pp.  291-293.) 


378  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 


Seler,  Eduard,  Gesammelte  Abhandlungen  zur  Amerikanischen 
sprach  und  Altertumskunde,  5 vols.  (Berlin,  1902-1915.) 

This  monumental  work,  comprising  almost  the  entire  output 
of  its  learned  author,  is  indispensable  for  the  study  of  Mexican 
archaeology  and  religion. 

Spence,  Lewis,  The  Civilization  of  Ancient  Mexico  ( Cam- 
bridge Manuals  of  Science  and  Letters).  (London,  1911.) 
The  Myths  of  Mexico  and  Peru.  (London,  1913.) 

The  former  work  is  a digest  of  the  strictly  verifiable  material 
of  Mexican  history  and  religion  ; the  latter  a sketch  of  the  sub- 
ject on  popular  lines. 

Spinden,  Herbert  J.,  A Study  of  Maya  Art  ( Memoirs  of  the 
Peabody  Museum,  Harvard,  vol.  vi).  (Cambridge,  Mass., 
1913.) 

This  admirable  work,  which  is  chiefly  concerned  with  the  sub- 
ject-matter and  development  of  Maya  art,  touches  in  places  upon 
the  forms  and  insignia  of  the  Mexican  deities. 

Strebel,  H.,  Alt-Mexico,  Archaologische  Beitrage,  2 vols.  (Ham- 
burg and  Leipzig.) 

Tylor,  E.  B.,  Anahuac  or  Mexico  and  the  Mexicans.  (London, 
1861.) 

Veytia,  M.,  Historia  antigua  de  Mexico.  (Mexico,  1836.) 
Wesselhoefp,  Selma,  and  Parker,  A.  M.,  Mexican  and  Central 
American  Antiquities,  Calendar  Systems  and  History . Twenty- 
four  papers  by  Eduard  Seler,  E.  Forstemann,  Paul  Schellhas, 
Carl  Sapper,  and  E.  P.  Dieseldorff,  translated  from  the 
German,  under  the  supervision  of  Charles  P.  Bowditch. 
Bulletin  28  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology,  Washington, 
1904. 

BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  THE  CODICES  RELATING 
TO  MEXICAN  MYTHOLOGY 

I.  Interpretative  Codices 

Codex  Vaticanus  A (3738)  or  Codex  Rios. 

(A)  Reproduced  in  vol.  ii  of  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities 

of  Mexico,  1830.  Translation  of  the  Interpre- 
tation in  vol.  vi,  pp.  155-420. 

(B)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat.  (Rome,  1900.) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION  379 


Codex  I'elleriano-Remensis. 

(A)  Reproduced  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities,  vol.  i. 

Translation  of  the  Interpretation  in  vol.  vi,  pp. 
95-153. 

(B)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat  (Paris,  1899), 

with  commentary  by  E.  T.  Hamy. 

Codex  Magliabecchiano. 

(A)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat.  (Rome,  1904.) 

(B)  Reproduced  by  Zelia  Nuttall  as  The  Book  of  the  Life 

of  the  Ancient  Mexicans.  (Berkeley,  California, 
1903.) 

(This  codex  is  accompanied  by  a contemporary  gloss  in 
Spanish.) 


II.  The  Codex  Borgia  Group 

Codex  Borgia. 

(A)  Reproduced  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities,  vol.  iii. 

(B)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat.  (Rome,  1908.) 

(C)  Commentary  in  German  by  Dr.  E.  Seler,  Eine  alt- 

mexikanische  Bildersclirift,  with  plan.  (Berlin, 
1904.) 

(D)  Reproduced  in  the  Atiales  del  Museo  Nacional  de 

Mexico,  vol.  v,  pp.  1-260,  with  Spanish  trans- 
lation of  Seler’s  essay  by  T.  Lares. 


Codex  Fejervary-Mayer. 

(A)  Reproduced  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities,  vol.  iii. 

(B)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat.  (Rome,  1901.) 

(C)  Commentary  ( Der  Codex  Fejervary-Mayer)  by  Dr.  E. 

Seler,  with  plan.  (Berlin,  1901.) 

(D)  English  translation  of  above  by  A.  II.  Keene.  (Ber- 

lin and  London,  1901-1902.) 


Codex  Bologna  or  Cospi. 

(A)  Reproduction  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities,  vol.  ii. 

(B)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat.  (Rome,  1899.) 

(C)  Commentary  by  Seler  ( Die  Mexikanischen  Bilden- 

handschrift  von  Bologna)  in  his  Gesammelte  Ab- 
handlungen,  vol.  i,  pp.  341-351. 


380  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION 

Codex  V aticanus  B. 

(A)  Reproduced  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities,  vol.  iii. 

(B)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat  (Rome  1896),  with 

commentary  by  Senor  F.  Paso  y Troncoso. 

(C)  Commentary  in  German  ( Der  Codex  V aticanus  B)  by 

Dr.  E.  Seler,  with  plan.  (Berlin,  1902.) 

(D)  English  translation  of  above  by  A.  H.  Keane.  (Ber- 

lin and  London,  1902-1903.) 

Codex  Laud. 

Reproduction  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities,  vol.  ii. 


III.  Unclassified  Codices 

The  Aubin-Goupil  Tonalamatl. 

(A)  Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat,  with  commentary 

by  E.  Seler.  (Paris,  1900.) 

(B)  English  translation  of  above  by  A.  H.  Keane,  with 

reproduction.  (Berlin  and  London,  1901.) 

Codex  Vienna,  Vindobonensis,  or  Indice  Meridionalis. 

(A)  First  reproduced  in  part  by  Olaus  Wormius,  Museum 

Wormianum.  (Leyden,  1655,  p.  383.) 

(B)  Reproduced  in  Kingsborough’s  Antiquities,  vol.  ii. 

(C)  Commentary  in  E.  Seler’s  Gesammelte  Abhandlungen. 

Codex  Zouche  or  Nuttall. 

Reproduced  with  commentary  by  Zelia  Nuttall.  (Pea- 
body Museum  publication.)  (Cambridge,  Mass., 
1902.) 

Codex  Borbonicus.  . 

Reproduced  by  the  Due  de  Loubat,  with  commentary 
by  E.  T.  Hamy.  (Paris,  1899.) 

See  also  on  the  subject  of  the  codices  generally : 

Aubin,  Memoire  sur  la  peinture  didactique  des  anciens  Mexicains 
( Revue  Oriental  et  Amtricaine).  (Paris,  1860,  pp.  224-255.) 
Boban,  Catalogue  raisonne  de  la  Collection  Aubin-Goupil.  (Paris, 
1889.)  (With  an  atlas  in  which  many  MSS.  are  reproduced 
in  phototype.) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  MEXICAN  RELIGION  881 


Lehmann,  W.,  “ Les  peintures  Mixteco-zapoteques  ” ( Journ . 
Soc.  Amer.  de  Paris,  N.S.,  tom.  ii).  (Paris,  1905,  pp.  241- 
280.) 

Antigiiedades  mexicanas,  publicadas  por  la  junta  Colombina  de 
Mexico.  (Mexico,  1892.)  Atlas  with  plates. 

Paso  y Troncoso,  Catalogo  de  Mexico  en  la  Exposicion  de  Madrid. 
(Mexico,  1892.) 

Penafiel,  Monumentos  del  arte-mexicano  antigua.  (Berlin,  1890.) 
Chavero,  Pinturas  jeroglijicas,  2 parts.  (Mexico,  1900-1901.) 


GLOSSARY 


For  the  convenience  of  readers  a glossary  of  the  Mexican  words 
most  frequently  employed  in  this  work  is  appended  : 


anauatl  . 
areyto 

atlatl 
aztaxelli  . 
calpulli  . 

chalchihuitl 


chicauaztli 

cueitl 
maxtli 
naualli  . 
nequen 
octli 


piloechmilli 

quauhxicalli 

quetzalli  . 


tamalli  . 

tecutli 
teocalli  . 


Ring  of  white  mussel-shell. 

Sacred  dance ; a word  of  Antillean  origin,  intro- 
duced by  the  Spanish  conquerors  of  Mexico. 

Spear-thrower. 

Forked  heron-feather  plume. 

Augmentative  of  calli,  house,  signifying  “ quar- 
ter,” “ district.” 

Green  stone — jadeite,  turquoise,  emerald — and 
precious  or  semi-precious  stones  of  a green 
colour. 

The  rattle-staff,  associated  with  the  water  and 
fertility  deities. 

Skirt,  petticoat. 

Loin-cloth. 

Disguise,  magical  form  or  shape. 

Robe. 

The  fermented  juice  of  the  Agave  americana. 
The  modern  term  is  pulque,  a word  of  Argen- 
tine origin. 

“ Face-painting  of  children.” 

“ Cup  of  eagles  ” ; stone  vase  in  which  the  hearts 
of  sacrificed  victims  were  placed. 

Feather-plumes  of  the  quetzaltototl  or  Trogon 
pavoninus,  a bird  indigenous  to  Mexico, 
the  plumes  of  which  were  greatly  prized  by 
the  natives. 

Maize-cake  (same  as  Spanish  corrupted  form 
tamale). 

Noble,  lord,  person  of  quality. 

Pyramid- temple. 

882 


GLOSSARY 


383 


teopan 

teotl 

telpoclicalli 

teueuelli  . 
tilmatli  . 
tlachtli 
tlachinolli 
tonalamatl 


toualli 

ulli 

xiuhcoatl 


Temple  precinct. 

God. 

House  of  the  youths,  the  place  of  instruction 
for  boys  in  training  for  the  priesthood. 

Shield  with  eagle’s-down  feathers. 

Mantle  or  cloak. 

A ball-game,  a kind  of  hockey. 

Fire-and-water  symbol. 

Book  of  Days  : an  arrangement  of  signs  indi- 
cating lucky  and  unlucky  days,  adapted  to 
the  calendar. 

Four  balls  or  beads  as  a shield  device. 

Indiarubber. 

Fire-snake. 


INDEX 


A 

Acompanados  (“  Lords  of  the 
Night”),  364 

Ages  of  Mexican  cosmogony,  37  ff.  ; 

sequence  of  the,  38  ff. 
Amalgamation,  processes  of  , in  Mexi- 
can religion,  21-6,  32 
Animal  gods,  17 
Annals,  native  Mexican,  7 
Annals  oj  Quauhtitlan,  or  Codex 
Chimalpopocd,  7,  63 
Arrow  sacrifice,  217 
Atemoztli  festival,  251 
Atempan  (“Place  of  Death”),  164 
Atlaua,  a deity,  263  ff.  ; aspect  and 
insignia,  263-4  ; nature  and  status, 
264 

Atonatiuh  (“  Water-sun”),  a period 
in  Mexican  cosmogony,  38 
Azteca,  the,  3 

B 

“ Battle  of  Flowers,”  161 
Bibliography  of  Mexican  Religion, 
374-80 
Bird-gods,  18 

C 

Camaxtli,  a deity,  313  ff. ; aspect  and 
insignia,  313  ; myth  of,  313-14 
Cannibalism,  ceremonial,  216 
Ce  itzcuintli,  festival  of,  277 
Cereal-gods,  12 

Chalchihuitl,  a precious  stone,  26 
Chalchihuitlicue,  a water-goddess, 
52,  256  ff.  ; aspect  and  insignia, 
257-9 ; myths  of,  259-60 ; fes- 
tivals of,  260  ; priesthood  of,  260  ; 
nature  and  status,  260-2 
Chalchiutotolin,  the  turkey.  111 
(note) 

Chantico,  a goddess,  180,  280  ff.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  280-1  ; myths 
of,  281-2  ; festival  of,  282  ; temple 
and  priesthood  of,  282  ; nature  and 
status  of,  282-3 

Chicaunaztli  (“Rain-rattle”),  189 


Chichimecs,  a Nahua  tribe  of  the 
steppes,  4,  9 

Chicomecoatl,  a maize-goddess,  153, 
164-5;  aspect  and  insignia,  170; 
myths  of,  170-1  ; festivals  of, 
171-2;  priesthood  of,  172-3; 
temples  of,  173  ; nature  and  status 
of,  173-4 

Chicomecoatl  iteopan  (“Temple  of 
Chicomecoatl  ” ) , 173 
Chicunaui  itzcuintli,  the  festival  of, 
282 

Cinteotl,  a maize-god,  162,  163,  164  ; 
aspect  and  insignia  of,  174 ; 
myths  of,  175-6;  festivals  of, 
176-7 ; temples  of,  177 ; priest- 
hood of,  177-8  ; nature  and  status 
of,  179 

Cipactli,  the  earth-monster,  13 
Ciuacoatl,  a goddess.  Aspect  and 
insignia,  179-80  ; myths  of,  180-2  ; 
temples  of,  182 ; nature  and 
status  of,  182-3 
Ciuapipiltin.  See  Ciuateteo 
Ciuateteo,  deified  dead  women,  168, 
176,  388  ff.  ; aspect  and  iiisignia, 
353-5  ; myths  of,  355  ; nature  and 
status,  355-8 

Ciuatlampa,  Region  of  the  West,  60 
Coatlicue,  a goddess,  colossal  figure 
of,  14  ; as  a primitive  fetish,  16, 
73  ff.,  154  ; in  general,  183  ff.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  183  ; statues 
of,  183-5  ; myth  of,  185  ; festival 
of,  185-6 ; nature  and  status  of, 
186-7 

Codex  Borgia  group,  place  of  origin 
of,  6 

Codex  Chimalpopocd.  See  Annals  of 
Quauhtitlan 

Codices,  or  native  paintings,  5-7  ; 
Interpretative,  8 ; place  of  origin, 
6 ; illustrations  in,  65  (note)  ; 
bibliography  of,  380-3 
Cosmogony,  36-64 
Coxcox,  fallacy  of  myth  concerning, 
53-4 

Coyolxauhqui,  a goddess,  74,  77,  78, 


384 


INDEX 


385 


79,  185,  324  ; aspect  and  insignia, 
324  ; myths  of,  324  ; nature  and 
status,  324 

Creation  myths,  36-64 ; common 
basis  of,  51-2 

Creative  gods,  12,  36-7,  146  ff. 
Cuesteca,  Huaxtee  priests  of  goddess 
Tlazolteotl,  166,  167 

D 

Day-gods,  362-3 

Deer,  the  two-headed,  181 

Deluge,  myths  of  the,  52  ff. 

E 

Earth,  gods  of  the,  153  ff. ; their 
relations  to  one  another,  154-6 
Earth,  the,  as  a monster,  13 
Earth-mother,  the,  13-14 ; equated 
with  the  earth-dragon,  14  ; Tona- 
caciuatl  as,  151 

Ecatonatiuh  (“  Wind-sun  ”),  a period 
in  Mexican  cosmogony,  38 
Elements  of  growth,  deification  of 
the,  13 

Etzalqualitztli,  the  festival  of,  249-51 

F 

Festivals.  See  Tonalamatl 
“ Fetish  ” origin  of  certain  Mexican 
deities,  16  ff. 

Fire-gods,  268  ff. 

Flaying  of  victims  after  sacrifice,  162 
G 

Glossary  of  Mexican  words,  382-3 
Gods  of  Mexico,  classified,  12  ; fall 
of  the,  55-7 ; regional,  59 ; 
method  of  treatment  of,  in  this 
work,  65  ; of  rain  and  moisture, 
234  ff.  ; of  fire,  268  ff.  ; of  octli  or 
pulque,  285  ff.  ; as  represented  by 
the  heavenly  bodies,  300  ff.  ; of 
death,  327  ff.  ; of  the  days,  362-3  ; 
of  the  weeks,  363  ; of  creation, 
146  ff.  ; the  greater  gods,  65  ff . ; 
of  the  earth  and  growth,  153  ff.  ; 
variants  of  the,  336  ff.  ; the  minor, 
344  ff. 

Grain,  deification  of  the,  14-15 
Gucumatz,  Quiche  name  of  Quetzal- 
coatl,  q.v. 

H 

Heavens,  supporters  of  the,  60  ; the 
Aztec,  61 

25 


Hiatoria  de  loa  Mexican  as  por  sue 
Pinluras,  48-51 

Homeyoca,  abode  of  the  creators,  62 
Hurakan,  Quiche  name  of  Tezcatli- 
poca,  138-9 

I 

Ilamatecutli,  a goddess,  229  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  229-30 ; myths  of, 
230  ; festivals  of,  230-2  ; nature 
and  status  of,  232-3 
Interpretative  Codices,  8 
Itzlacoliuhqui-ixquimilli,  a deity,  337 
Itzpapalotl,  a goddess,  223  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  223-5 ; n^'ths  of, 
225-6  ; nature  and  status  of,  277-8 
Itztli,  336-7 

Ixcuiname,  a group  of  goddesses, 
159-60 

Ixnextli,  a goddess,  190 
Ixtlilton,  a deity,  349  ff.  ; aspect  and 
insignia,  350-1  ; nature  and  status, 
351-2 

Izcalli,  the  festival  of,  275 
Iztac  Mixcoatl,  a deity,  312  ff.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  312-13 

K 

Kukulkan,  Maya  name  of  Quetzal- 
coatl,  133  ff. 

L 

Lords  of  the  Night,  364 

M 

Macuiltochtli,  an  octli-god,  297  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  298 ; nature 
and  status  of,  298 
Macuilxochitl-Xochipilli,  a deity,  178, 
196  ; aspect  and  insignia,  196-7, 
198-9  ; statues  of,  197-8,  199-200  ; 
myth  of,  200-1  ; festival  of,  201-2  ; 
nature  and  status  of,  202-3 
Matlalcueye,  a goddess,  191,  265 ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  265-6  ; nature 
and  status,  266 

Mayauel,  a goddess,  175,  294  ff.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  295-6  ; myths 
of,  296-7  ; nature  and  status  of, 
297 

Medicine,  Patecatl,  the  god  of,  292  ff. 
Metztli,  the  Moon-god,  308  ff.  ; as- 
pect and  insignia,  308-9  ; myths 
of,  309 ; nature  and  status  of, 
309-10 

Mexican  races,  history  of,  2-4 ; 

subject  to  the  Azteca,  3-4 
Mexican  religion,  type  of,  1-2 ; 


386 


INDEX 


antiquity  of,  4-5 ; literature  of, 
5-8  ; origins  of,  8-10  ; opposing 
forces  in,  9,  10  ; at  the  period  of 
the  Conquest,  9-10  ; evidences  of 
primitive  influences  in,  10  fit.  ; 
animism  in,  16  ; cultural  elements 
in,  122 

Mictecaciuatl,  331  ff.  ; aspect  and 
insignia,  331-2  ; nature  and  status, 
332 

Mictlampa,  Region  of  the  Dead,  60, 
63-4 

Mictlantecutli,  god  of  the  dead,  63, 
64,  327  ff.  ; aspect  and  insignia, 
327-30  ; myths  of,  330-1  ; nature 
and  status  of,  331 
Minor  deities,  344  fi. 

Mixcoatl,  181,  310  fi.  ; aspect  and 
insignia,  310-11  ; statuary  and 
paintings,  311-12;  festivals  of, 
315-16  ; temples,  316-17  ; nature 
and  status  of,  317-19 
Monachism  in  Mexico,  9,  10 
Moon,  creation  of,  40  ff. 

Moon-god,  308  ff. 

Motecuhzoma  II,  wears  Xipe’s  dress, 
207 

Mother-sheaf,  the,  174 
N 

Nagualism,  18 
Nahuatl  language,  2 
Nahua,  the,  2-3 ; of  Anahuac 
separated  from  those  of  the  south- 
west, 6 

Nanahuatzin,  a deity,  43 
Napatecutli,  a deity,  264 ; nature 
and  status,  264-5 
Nauollin,  the  festival  of,  303 
Nemontemi,  the,  or  unlucky  days, 
369-70 

O 

Obsidian,  the  cult  of,  27  ff.  See  also 
Tezcatlipoca 

Ochpaniztli,  the  festival  of,  161-5, 
172 

Octli,  or  pulque  (drink),  the  gods  of; 
286  ff.  ; aspect  and  insignia,  285  ; 
general  allusions  to,  286 ; fes- 
tivals of,  287  ; nature  and  status 
of,  287-8 
Omacatl,  352-3 

Opochtli,  a deity,  266 ; aspect  and 
insignia  of,  266 ; nature  and 
status  of,  266-7 

Original  gods  of  Mexico,  the,  12 


P 

Panquetzalitztli,  the  festival  of,  70-3 
Patecatl,  the  god  of  medicine,  292  ff.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  292-3  ; myths 
of,  293  ; nature  and  status,  294 
Paynal,  a deity,  339-40 
Pedro  de  Rios,  interpreter  of  Mexican 
codices,  8 

“ Pied  Piper,”  Xipe  as,  209,  210 
Piltzintecutli,  the  Sun-god,  190 
Popol  Vuh,  the  sacred  book  of  the 
Quiches,  135  ff. 

Pueblo  Indians,  religion  of  the,  11 
Pulque-gods.  See  Octli-gods 

Q 

Quail,  the,  Xipe  as,  220 
Quaitl  eloa,  the  festival  of,  246 
Quaxolotl,  a goddess,  283  ff.  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  283-4  ; nature  and 
status  of,  284 

Quecholli,  the  festival  of,  193 
Quetzalcoatl,  a deity.  His  religion, 
10,  24  ff.  ; amalgamation  of  his 
cult  with  the  solar  cult,  21-2 ; 
his  aspect  and  insignia,  117-21; 
wall-paintings  of,  122 ; statuary 
of,  121-2;  myths  of,  123-36; 
festivals  of,  136 ; priesthood  of, 
136-7 ; temples  of,  137  ; nature 
and  status  of,  137-44  ; etymology 
of  name,  144-5  ; his  costumes  sent 
to  Cort6z,  119;  as  the  planet 
Venus,  122,  129 ; Central  Ameri- 
can myths  regarding  him,  133  ff.  ; 
as  the  trade  wind,  138  ff.  ; Tolteo 
and  Huaxtec  connections  of,  139- 
40  ; criticism  of  the  later  elements 
of  his  myth,  141  ff.  ; connexion 
with  the  fountain  of  youth  myth, 
141  ; development  of  his  concep- 
tion, 142  ff. 

R 

Rain-cult  of  Mexico,  11-15,  18,  23 
Rain,  different  varieties  of,  16 
Rain,  gods  of,  234  ff. 

Religion.  See  Mexican  religion 
Religious  idea,  homogeneous  nature 
of,  in  Mexico,  33-4 

S 

Sacrifice,  human,  19-20,  193 
Sahagun,  Bernardino,  his  Historia 
General,  7 ; his  method,  8 
Seler,  Professor  Eduard,  on  place  of 
origin  of  Mexican  codices,  6 


INDEX 


387 


Skins,  wearing  of  human.  See  Xipe, 
passim 

Sky-fathor,  Tonacatecutli  as,  151 
Spanish  writers  on  Mexican  religion, 
7-8 

Spinden,  Dr.  J.  H.,  on  place  of  origin 
of  Mexican  codices,  6 
Stellar  and  planetary  gods,  300  ff. 
Sun  and  moon,  creation  myths  of, 
42  ff. 

Sun,  the,  not  at  first  regarded  as  an 
agency  of  growth,  13 
Sun-god,  300  ff. 

Suns  as  world  ages.  See  Cosmogony 
T 

Tamoanchan,  the  paradise  of  the 
west,  175 

Tecciztecatl,  a moon-god,  43 
Tecuilhuitontli,  the  festival  of,  262 
Temalacatl,  or  stone  of  combat,  214 
Teotleco,  the  festival  of,  102-3 
Teoyaomiqui,  a goddess,  184 
Tepeyollotl,  an  earth-god,  332  ff.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  332-3  ; myths 
of,  333-4 ; nature  and  status  of, 
334-5 

Tepoxtecatl,  an  octli-god,  291  ff.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  291 ; temple, 
291  ; nature  and  status,  291-2 
Teted  innan,  a goddess,  153 
Tezcatlipoca,  a deity.  As  obsidian, 
29-31;  110  ff.;  as  a turkey,  111 
(note)  ; aspect  and  insignia,  91-7  ; 
festivals  of,  97-103 ; myths  of, 
103-10;  nature  and  status,  110-11; 
red  and  black  forms  of,  96  ff.  ; as 
Xipe,  205 

Tezcatzoncatl,  a deity,  289  ff. ; aspect 
and  insignia,  289-90 ; myth  of, 
290  ; nature  and  status,  290 
Tititl,  festivals  of,  230 
Tlacacozcaquauhtli,  the  vulture  god, 
188 

Tlacaxipeuliztli,  the  festival  of, 
212-17 

Tlachitonatiuh  (‘‘ Earth-sun ’’),  a 
period  in  Mexican  cosmogony 
Tlachtli,  the  Mexican  game  of,  176 
Tlaloc,  the  Rain-god.  Prayer  to,  12; 
his  pluvial  character,  15  ; elements 
of  his  cult,  23-4  ; mention  of,  189, 
191  ; aspect  and  insignia  of,  236- 
41;  statuary  and  vases,  241-2; 
myths  of,  242-6  ; festivals  of,  246  ; 
temples  of,  252-3 ; priesthood, 
254  ; prayers  to,  254  ; nature  and 
status,  254-6 


Tlalocan,  the  paradise  of  Tlaloc,  15, 
61-2 

Tlaloque,  the  servants  of  Tlaloc,  15, 
242-6 

Tlalxicco,  interior  of  the  earth,  59 
Tlamacasque,  a priest,  187,  188 
Tlapcopa,  Region  of  the  East,  5-9 
Tlatauhqui  Cinteotl  (“  Temple  of  Red 
Maize”),  177 

Tlauizcalpantecutli,  319  ff.  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  319-22;  nature  and 
status,  322-4 

Tlaxocliimaco,  the  festival  of,  69-70 
Tlazolteotl,  a goddess,  156  ff. ; aspect 
and  insignia,  156-9 ; myths  of, 
159  ; sacrifice  to,  by  shooting  with 
arrows,  159-60 ; hymn  to,  160-1  ; 
festivals  of,  161-5  ; ritual  of,  165- 
6 ; temple  of,  166  ; priesthood  of, 
166  ; nature  and  status  of,  166-9 
Tlillan  calmecac,  temple  of  Ciuacoatl, 
182 

Tloque  nahuaque,  the  creative  spirit, 
148 

Toci,  a goddess,  152 
Toctitlan  (“  Place  of  our  Grand- 
mother ”),  temple  of  Tlazolteotl, 
165,  166 

Tollan,  city  of,  10 
Toltec  civilization,  the,  10 
Tomiauhteeutli,  a deity,  299  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  299 ; nature  and 
status,  299 

Tonacaciuatl,  a creative  goddess, 
147  ff. ; aspect  and  insignia,  147-8  ; 
myth  of,  148-50 ; nature  and 
status,  150-2 

Tonacatecutli,  a creative  deity, 
146  ff. ; aspect  and  insignia,  146-7  ; 
myths,  148-50  ; nature  and  status, 
150-2 

Tonalamatl,  the,  a book  of  fate  and 
fortune.  See  Appendix,  359  ff.  ; 
nature  of,  359-60  ; day-signs  of, 
360-1  ; in  tabular  form,  361-2  ; 
day-gods  of,  362-3 ; gods  of  the 
“ weeks,”  363  ; “ Lords  of  the 

Night,”  or  Acompanados,  in,  364; 
lords  of  the  day  - hours  in,  365  ; 
festivals  included  in  the,  366 ; 
recapitulation  of  information  re- 
garding the,  366 ; solar  calendar 
and  the,  367  ; names  of  the  years, 
368  ; the  calendar-round,  368-9  ; 
the  nemontemi,  369-70 ; Venus 
period  and  the,  370  ; bibliography 
of  the,  373 

Tonatiuh,  the  Sun-god,  300  ff. ; aspect 
and  insignia  of,  300-2 ; wall- 


388 


INDEX 


paintings  of,  302  ; myths  of, 
302-3  ; festivals  of,  303  ; nature 
and  status,  303-5 

Totec  tlamacasque,  the  high-priest  of 
Uitzilopochtli,  81 
Totemism,  17-18 

Totochtin,  an  octli-god,  298  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  298-9  ; nature  and 
status,  299 

Totoltecatl,  an  octli-god,  297  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  297 
Toxcatl  festival,  97  ff. 

Tozozontli  festival,  248-9 
Trade  wind,  Quetzalcoatl  as  the, 
138  S 

Tree  of  the  East,  68  ; of  the  North, 
58 ; of  the  South,  59 ; of  the 
West,  58 

Tzitzimime,  demons  of  the  air,  324  3. ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  325  ; myths 
of,  325  ; nature  and  status,  325-6 

U 

Uei  tecuilhuitl,  festival  of,  221 
Uei  Tozoztli,  festival  of,  171 
Uitzilopochtli,  a deity,  16,  17,  66  a.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia  of,  66-9 ; 
festivals  of,  69-73,  73-80  ; hymns 
to,  80-81  ; priesthood  of,  81  ; 
temple  of,  81-3 ; nature  and 
status  of,  83-91  ; etymology  of 
the  name,  83-5 

Uitzlampa,  region  of  the  earth,  60 
Uixtociuatl,  262  3.  ; aspect  and 
insignia,  262  ; festivals,  262-3 ; 
nature  and  status,  263 
Universe,  Mexican  conception  of  the, 
57  a. 

V 

Variants  of  the  great  gods,  336  a. 
Venus  period,  the,  370 
Votan,  the  Central  American  name 
of  Quetzalcoatl,  133  3. 

W 

“ Week ’’-gods,  363 

Witches,  Mexican,  168-9,  355-8 

World,  regions  of  the,  57  3. 


X 

Xalaquia.  a sacrificed  virgin,  13-14 
Xilonen,  a grain-deity,  221 ; aspect 
and  insignia,  221  ; festival,  221  ; 
priesthood,  222  ; nature  and 
status,  222-3 

Xipe  Totec,  a deity,  203  ; aspect  and 
insignia,  204—8  ; masks,  vases,  etc. , 
of,  206  ; statues,  206-7  ; element® 
of  his  insignia,  207-8 ; myths, 
208-12  ; song  of,  211  ; festival  of, 
212-7  ; temples  of,  217-8  ; priest- 
hood of,  218  ; nature  and  statue 
of,  218-20 

Xiuhtecutli,  a fire-god,  268  a.  ; aspect 
and  insignia,  268-70 ; myths  of, 
271-3;  festivals  of,  273-8  ; temple 
of,  278 ; priesthood  of,  278 ; 
nature  and  status  of,  278 
Xochicalco,  pyramid  of,  194 
Xochilhuitl,  festival  of,  201-2 
Xochipilli,  a deity,  176,  177,  178,  see 
Mac  uil  xochitl-Xochipill  i 
Xochiquetzal,  a goddess,  187  B.  ; 
aspect  and  insignia,  187-9  ; pot- 
tery figures  of,  189;  myths  of, 
189-92  ; festivals  of,  192-4  ; tem- 
ples of,  194  ; nature  and  status, 
194 

Xochtecatl,  mountain  of,  194—195 
Xocohuetzi,  festival  of,  273 
Xolotl,  a deity,  344  3.  ; aspect  and 
insignia,  344-6  ; wall-paintings  of, 
346 ; pottery  figures  of,  346-7  ; 
myths  of,  347-8  ; nature  and  statue 
of,  348-9 

Y 

Yaeatecutli,  a deity,  340  fi. 

Yappan,  a hermit,  myth  of,  191-2 
Yzpuzteque,  a god  of  the  Under- 
world, 63 

Z 

Zapotlantenan,  a goddess,  228  ; as- 
pect and  insignia,  228  ; priesthood, 
228-9  ; nature  and  status,  229 


Printed  in  Qreal  Britain  by  flateil , Watson  & Viruy,  M., 
London  and  Ayleabury. 


